Repercussions
by hollister9
Summary: At twenty one years old Hermione wasn't expecting to be having a baby any time soon. But after a passionate night under the bed sheets with a man who she loved to hate, she finds herself facing ultra-scans and diapers sooner than she thinks...
1. An Unexpected Result

_**Repercussions**_

by

**Hollister9**

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><p>It was a week before Christmas and the little town of Hogsmeade was standing like a postcard. Snowflakes were falling gracefully from the sky and landing on the ground covering the cobbled streets like a thick blanket of snow. Footprint trails led off into shops or warm pubs full of merry drunkards, and along with fading Christmas Carols, the festive cheer and spirit floated in the air.<p>

In the Burrow, Mrs Weasley was bustling around the kitchen humming 'Santa Baby' jollily as she prepared the roast dinner. Sunday roasts for the Weasley's and all their extended family and friends was a weekly ritual where everyone came together to chat and share news, have a laugh, a drink or two (maybe three) and enjoy a delicious meal. It was tradition, and it was rare when somebody owled to say they couldn't make it. Even rarer when it was Hermione Granger.

Hermione shared a wonderful little flat along Hogsmeade high street with Ginny, so the two always came to dinner together. The first week when Ginny arrived alone saying Hermione was ill, Molly understood, even sympathised, for Hermione was like a second daughter to her. The second week when she was absent again because she had an overload of work to finish, Molly understood then too. Hermione worked as a Healer at St. Mungos, and the hours were ridiculously long, so of course she was going to be exhausted. And then there was the third, fourth and fifth week with her gone, as she had taken time off work (for the first time in three years) and gone on to visit her parents in Australia, which seemed a very sudden and spontaneous trip for Hermione, who was the type of person to spend weeks making a decision rather than hurrying into a rash one. Molly owled her and said that when she was back, she simply must join them for dinner and see everyone. She had been gone a month and a half and they missed her. Hermione said she would, but when she was home she excused herself from that meal too, saying she was a Bridesmaid at her cousin's wedding. And now, Molly could hide her suspicions no longer. Something was going on with Hermione, and she was definitely going to find out what.

Ginny was standing in the hallway mirror having just finished applying her mascara. It was Sunday, which of course, meant Roast dinner at the Burrow. She always looked forward to her mum's dinners at her childhood home, but this time even more so as it was the first time Hermione would be seeing everyone after her long two month absence. Being her flatmate and closest girlfriend, Ginny would be a terrible liar if she said that she hadn't noticed Hermione acting different recently, but whenever she asked her what was wrong her reply would be the same – that she was stressed about work. Every Sunday when she arrived she would be bombarded with questions about her friend, and every Sunday she would pass on the same message. And now after weeks of hearing 'she's just tired from work', all of them - her parents, Harry, Ron, Fred, George, Sirius, Remus, Tonks and even little Teddy were growing suspicious about her, not to mention very worried. Ginny sighed and gave herself a final once over in the mirror, hoping that whatever was going on with her friend would be sorted out soon. They wanted their old Hermione back.

Satisfied she looked good, she turned around and waited for Hermione to come out of the toilet.

"Herms, what's taking you so long?" she asked. "You've been in there for nearly ten minutes!"

Inside the bathroom, Hermione stood facing the wall, her forehead resting on the cold tiles as she tried to will down the thumping beat of her heart. Only one minute and six seconds left. Fuck. She couldn't remember a time she felt more nervous than she did right now. She glanced at her watch again. Fifty two seconds left…

At her silence, Ginny furrowed her eyebrows and strode to the bathroom door, knocking lightly. "Hermione?"

Hermione turned around quickly, knocking the soap from the sink top as she did so. "Er – I'll be out in a minute Gin!" she called hoarsely back, hastily snatching the soap from the floor and replacing it. Twenty seconds left._ Shit_.

"Alright but we should have been there fifteen minutes ago," Ginny replied, cocking an eyebrow when she heard her friend breathing heavily from the other side of the door. "Have you got diarrhoea or something-?"

Hermione ignored her and bit hard down on her bottom lip as she reached out with a shaky hand to take the test from the side of the bath.

"I'll be out in a second!" Hermione shouted back, inclining her head to the door and back to the object in her quivering hand. Exhaling nervously, she forced herself to open her eyes and peer down at it. When had she become such a coward? A split second later – she dropped the test to the floor and leapt back as if it was a poisonous spider. There, as clear as ever was a little green plus sign. It was positive.

Having lost interest with twirling her house keys in her hand, Ginny huffed impatiently and stormed back to the bathroom door ready to knock it down. She raised her fist to smash it against the wood when a whimpered cry stopped her.

"Hermione?" Ginny spoke lowly. "Are you okay?"

Hermione swore under her breath and not knowing what to do with herself, spun on the spot and hurriedly whipped a few cupboards open and slammed them shut, before staring back at the thing in her hand. _Please say that was a hallucination._ She whispered over and over. But of course it wasn't. Squinting, the plus sign in front of her was as clear as ever.

"No." Her breath hitched and she sunk to the floor, her face in her hands. "No!"

"Hermione for fucks sake! What are you doing babe?"

She was knocking harder on the door now, worried for her friend. Hermione looked up and inhaled deeply, her breath shaky and broken as she gasped for air.

"Oh my god," she sobbed, "this can't be happening…"

Ginny's eyes widened in concern and she knocked harder on the door. She had never heard Hermione sound so upset. She was – undoubtedly - one of the strongest and bravest people she knew, which only made it worse, as it meant that whatever it was that had happened was something _big_.

"Hermione," she said in a firm voice of no argument. "Let me in and tell me what's going on. If you don't, I'm going to hex the door down anyway, so you may as well open up."

A few minutes later there was a click of lock and the door creaked open. Hermione stepped out, her cheeks streaked with tears and her body stiff with shock. Ginny closed the space between them immediately and gripped her forearms. "Babe, what's going on? What happened?"

Hermione shook her head and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, sniffling. "I – I can't believe it Ginny," she muttered, so quietly the redhead had to lean in to hear.

"What can't you believe?" Ginny asked tenderly. "You can tell me, Herms-" Ginny began, but stopped abruptly when Hermione shook her head again and buried her head in her neck, crying.

"I c-can't – can't do this Gin…" she sobbed.

"Herms…Herms talk to me about it," she whispered back, stroking her hair as the tears continued pouring. "We tell each other everything don't we?"

"We – we used to," Hermione hiccupped, "But the past few weeks…" she cried harder. "I - I want to tell you but - it's just so… _so_ hard. I can't-!"

Ginny frowned in concern and rubbed her back comfortingly. "Sure you can. It's not about work is it? Like you've been saying it is?"

Hermione pulled back from their hug, her chocolate eyes wet and blotchy. "No, it's nothing to do with work…" she answered honestly, nibbling on her nails.

Something caught Ginny's eye over her friend's shoulder and she froze.

"Is that_ – is that a pregnancy test?_"

She nodded to the bathroom floor, and her jaw unhinged when she answered her own question. Moving closer, she could see that… yes. It was a pregnancy test. Her eyes swivelled back to Hermione, whose cheeks were flushed pink with guilt as she blinked back a fresh wave of tears.

"You might be pregnant?" she whispered, even though they were the only ones in their flat.

Hermione shook her head. "No." She peered up at her timidly. "I _am_ pregnant."

Ginny couldn't hold in the gasp. Her hand clasped over her opened mouth and she stared at her best friend in complete and utter shock. They stayed like that, saying nothing but looking at each other and hoping this was all some kind of bizarre dream. Hermione broke. Her eyes flickered to the floor and she began fidgeting with her sleeve. Realising she wasn't helping matters, Ginny rushed over to her and pulled her into a tight hug again, letting her friend cry into her shoulder.

"It's okay Herms, it's okay..." Hermione sobbed harder. "Well it's not I know," Ginny recovered quickly, "but it will be. If this is the first test you've done - and I'm guessing it is, then you can't be sure. They're not always one hundred percent accurate. You never know, it might be a false alarm and this whole thing will be nothing. I'll owl mum and tell her we can't make dinner… I'll make a good enough excuse. She's going to go mad that you're missing another Sunday Roast, but this can't wait. We can run down the high street and get another test so you can know for sure-"

"There's no point," Hermione muttered, her voice muffled against her shoulder. "I know I am. I'm a month and a half late Ginny. I've been getting all the symptoms: sickness… tender breasts… tiredness… I've been getting them for ages, so I thought I'd go and get a test on the way back from work to see if I was right." She exhaled heavily. "And I was. It was positive."

Ginny rubbed her back and squeezed her tighter. "Are you keeping it?"

"Yes," she murmured, sounding confident for the first time. "No matter how young and unprepared I am, I love this baby from the bottom of my heart."

Ginny smiled and nodded. "Good. Who's is it?" she said in her ear. "The father…? Is it Ron?"

Hermione swallowed and squeezed her eyes shut. She was hoping to avoid this topic. "No," she replied shakily, pulling back. "I haven't – you know – been like that with him ever since we broke up - months before that actually… I wasn't too overstruck doing it with… with him…"

Ron and Hermione started going out together the night of the Battle of Hogwarts when they kissed in the Chamber of Secrets, but to Molly's dismay, they split ten months ago after agreeing that they made better friends than they did lovers. They wanted different things in life, so it was never going to last.

Ginny's jaw dropped once more. "It's not Ron's?" Hermione shook her head no, and she gaped at her, but recovered a few seconds later. She didn't want her friend to feel even more uncomfortable than she already did. "So… so whose is it then?"

Ginny found herself making a mental list of all the possibilities and crossing them off. Obviously it wasn't Harry's – she was engaged to him and hopefully, if he finished his Auror training on time, they would be married by next summer. She was digressing. So it wasn't Ron's either…

"Fred? George?" she found herself asking.

Hermione scoffed and laughed through her tears, fanning them dry. "No. I've never had the experience of a Weasley sandwich, and I don't want to thank you very much."

"That's very wise," Ginny grinned. "So that's a no to all my other brothers then?"

"Yes," she nodded. No doubt Mrs Weasley would be disappointed. She was very fond of Hermione and Grandchildren were something she was desperate for. She made no secret of hiding the fact.

"Well who else is there?" Ginny wondered aloud. "Dean? Seamus? Oliver?" she shrugged her shoulders, completely guessing. "Krum? Cormac? Ernie Macmillan?" she was plucking names from the air now. She didn't have a bloody clue.

"No, it's none of them," Hermione replied heavily, looking and feeling miserable. She took a deep breath, not believing she was about to say this herself. "It's-" she swore under her breath again. "I can't say it."

"I'm not going to draw the names out of a hat until you say yes," Ginny said, trying to keep her patience – though it was wearing thin. She was desperate to know who the father was. "Just tell me Herms, the longer you put it off the harder it will be-"

"It's Sirius's."

"What?"

"Sirius. He's the baby father."

Ginny frowned. She was so very confused. "Who's baby?"

Hermione slapped her hand to her forehead in exasperation. "_My baby!_"

"WHAT!" Ginny whisper-shouted. "_Our_ Sirius? Sirius Black? Sirius as in Harry's forty year old Godfather-?"

Hermione groaned and made a sound of acknowledgement. This time, Ginny couldn't pretend that she wasn't shocked. She was going mental.

"Oh my god Herms! _SIRIUS?_ He's old enough to be our dad-!"

"No he's not!" Hermione exclaimed quickly. "He's not! He was in the Veil for five years and it froze his age, meaning he's thirty five-!"

Sirius returned from the Veil the minute Bellatrix was killed, waking up outside the archway in the Department of Mysteries. After being back for two days it was like he had never left. He had the same liking of firewhisky, the same charming flair about him, the same handsome face and gorgeous body… - only he was different too. Now when he smiled it was genuine and not a fake and fleeting 'on one minute of the next' smile as it once had been; he looked younger, happier and healthy, and it was heart-warming to see. Undoubtedly though, Sirius was a big kid, and the fact that Hermione had fallen for the Black charm was more shocking than anything.

"But…but it was always me who fancied him when we were younger! When we stayed at Grimmauld Place in the summer and for Christmas – I always got embarrassed around him but you didn't care at all! You didn't even get along with him! You didn't like him at all!"

She still didn't.

"I know," Hermione sighed, rubbing her face in exhaustion. "I know. I didn't back then and I don't now. He infuriates me, he really does. You know how we are…"

Ginny chuckled and made a very obvious nod. "I think everyone does, even though I see them more or less on a daily basis free of charge, I would willingly pay money to see your arguments. They are absolutely incredible."

And she wasn't lying. Sirius and Hermione were like chalk and cheese, clashed over everything, bickered over who should pass the salt, got on each other's nerves so much that Hermione would refuse to speak to him for days… the list went on. The only ways they were similar was in their bravery, love for Harry and stubbornness. They were both very,_ very _stubborn!

"So tell me what happened," Ginny urged her, feeling rather excited. "I want to know how you went from arch enemies to having passionate sex."

Hermione threw her an un-amused glare.

"It was one night. Halloween. I'd been working a night shift at the Hospital and so by the time I apparated to the Burrow the party had finished and most people had gone to bed or left. Sirius was still up. And - and I don't know how it happened. I was tired and stressed and he offered me a cup of tea. I remember feeling so surprised..."

She looked surprised even as she re-called it.

"Anyway… I accepted, and he went away and came back with it and gave it to me. He then sat next to me and asked what was wrong. It took a while for him to convince me he wasn't there to annoy me – that he was there because he cared… so I told him, and then we talked for ages about everything… my family… his family… the war…and then- you won't believe this Gin…"

She shook her head in amazement, a small smile flicking across her lips. "He said how much he admired me and how brave I was when Bellatrix tortured me… and – and that he'd never properly thanked me for saving his life that time in third year. Then it all changed and…" her voice became light as if she was re-living it in her head. "He was leaning in and – and before I knew it we were kissing and touching and neither of us stopped. Then we just…" she waved her hands to indicate that things moved on. "And now here I am, twenty one and pregnant with his baby." She huffed in frustration. "It was _one_ _bloody night!_"

"Wow." Ginny blinked, trying to let it all sink in. "It sounds quite… passionate. You hadn't been drinking at all?"

Hermione laughed bitterly. "Nope. Not a drop. That's the worst thing about it. I can't even use it as an excuse."

"What about him? Had he had any?"

She bit her lip in thought then shook her head, blushing slightly. "I would have tasted it on him if he had. He was acting like normal… we both were."

Ginny raised her eyebrows and smiled at her in an attempt to cheer her up, though it seemed unlikely. "Well at least you didn't have drunken sex you don't remember. What happened is much better."

"Really? I think it's worse," she mumbled.

Ginny looked apologetically at her. "Why didn't you tell me? I'm your best friend. I could have helped you."

Hermione looked up, her chocolate eyes filled with sadness and regret. "I'm so sorry," she muttered. "I wanted to, honestly Gin you won't believe how much I did… but whenever I tried to I didn't know what to say or – or where to start. I mean…" she groaned into her hands. "Oh god. I don't know what to do. I can't tell him! We haven't even spoken since it happened!"

Ginny's eyes widened in realisation. "Is _that_ why you've been making excuses and missing weeks and weeks of Sunday dinners? Because Sirius would be there?"

Hermione nodded.

"But why?" she asked her, rubbing her arm and almost laughing. "That's just silly! He's been asking me where you've been every week; obviously he wants to talk to you about it. Avoiding him is just making the situation worse… _and plus_-" she continued determinedly when Hermione tried to interrupt. "It's not exactly the Gryffindor way to do things is it? Run from your problems? When have you ever been scared of a man Hermione? You're one of the bravest people I know!"

"I'm not when it comes to sex and babies!" she retorted. "And anyway, if I _had_ gone to your mum's every Sunday with him there what on earth would I say to him? It's bad enough we had sex, but being sober when it happened is even worse-"

"Forget that now, it's doesn't matter, honestly it doesn't. What _does_ matter is your pregnant with his baby and the poor bloke has no idea! You know, he might not react as bad as you think. Sirius loves children; he's great with Teddy-"

"Oh come on Ginny are we talking about the same person? I know he's lovely with Teddy, I'm not saying he isn't… but he's not _responsible_ for Teddy is he? Remus and Tonks are because they are his parents, in the same way that he will be responsible for our baby being its father – and Sirius isn't responsible! He can't even take care of himself, let alone a child! He's down the pub every night with the twins no doubt taking a different sleazy, slaggy blonde home each time… Remember what he was like with Harry at Hogwarts?"

"That doesn't matter! You can talk all day about his history; how he's an ex-convict, his family were a load of maniacs and blah blah blah, but - that stuff – it's irrelevant. Look Herms, I know this is huge but you really don't have a choice. You have to tell him. Whether you like it or not, it's his baby just as much as it's yours. He has a right to know."

"But it's Sirius," she mumbled helplessly, as if the line in itself was a reason. "I don't even like him."

Ginny cocked her eyebrow in inquisitively. "You liked him enough to sleep with him."

"Yes, one time!" Hermione fired up defensively.

Ginny shrugged and gave her shoulder a light squeeze. "Unfortunately whether it one time or a thousand times, it doesn't change the fact that he is the father of your child and you're going to have to tell him. Soon."

Hermione slumped back against the doorframe. She knew Ginny was right, but it was accepting and dealing with it that was the problem… She was pregnant with Sirius Black's baby. She was having a baby. The father was Sirius. Black.

There's something she'd never thought she'd say.

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><p><strong><em>AN: Like that thing called... oh what is it... the werewolf-weird-vampire-guy who climbs trees thing... Twlight is it? Yeah that crap - this story also came to me in a dream._ ****_Happy New Year!_ :) **


	2. She's Young, He's Reckless

_A/N: All your reviews were really lovely for the first Chapter, so thank you for that! Those of you that said about the 'Herms' thing, I read back on it and you are so right. The name is incredibly irritating, so I've tried not to include it so much. It kind of makes me want to knock Ginny out cold and never wake up. I will be updating in the next few days because I would say that this chapter is quite stingy in regards to the story progression. Even I think that, and I'm the author! Don't fret. It'll be here. :) how do you think Sirius will react? And what gender would you like the baby to be? Let me know! -sophie x_

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><p>Chap 2: <em><strong>She's<strong>** Young, He's Reckless**_

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><p>If there were three words to describe Arthur Weasley it would be a kind family man.<p>

He was the proud father to seven children and Granddad to god knows how many more, (Charlie and Rowena's children, Bill and Fleur's children, Percy and Penelope's children… there was too many to count). He was also a loving husband. He had met Molly at Hogwarts and they married shortly after their seventh year. Years they had been together now. _Years_. There wasn't a person he knew more than his Molly. He could read her like a book. He knew when she was worried about something, when she was tired or when she wanted a cup of tea… he knew the exact time she woke up in the mornings and the time she stepped into the shower, and even the little things like how she brushed her hair… but most importantly, he knew when she was annoyed. He watched as his wife stood against the kitchen counter, her hand on her hip and her lips pushed into a pout as her eyes darted from the table to the clock on the wall and back again. And that look he knew well. It was the look of utter annoyance and frustration.

"How about you serve up the dinner dear?" Arthur suggested, glancing and smiling pleasantly to the occupants at the table waiting for their Sunday Roast. They were all there, Harry, Ron, Remus, Tonks, Teddy, and Luna, who had joined them this evening, which was always a lovely surprise. She liked to travel a lot to faraway places like Norway, and when she was back she was always welcome at the Burrow. Sirius was here too, they could hear him out the front, parking up his motorbike. It seemed the only two that _wasn't_ there, was the two that promised they _would_ be…

"I can't believe this!" Molly fired up, tossing her oven mitt to the side. "Hermione sent me an owl this morning assuring me that she would be here tonight and where is she? Where are the both of them?"

She sent a questioning look to the people at the table as if they were in an interrogation room and she was demanding their whereabouts. Harry and Ron twisted to look at each other in their chairs, a mirrored expression of shock-merging-disappointment on their faces. They turned back to red cheeked woman. "We really don't know what's got into Hermione mum," Ron said earnestly. "Ginny says 'Mione's just going through a rough time at work and that she'll talk to her about it and try and help her out, so maybe that's why they're late…"

His father nodded in agreement. "Yes, precisely. There's no need to get so worked up Molly dear, I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation."

"Oh _is there_ Arthur!" she trilled. "Well what about the past _two_ _months?_ Is there reasonable explanations for all of those too? No!" she answered herself. "You know as well as I do – you _all_ know as well as I do that there is something fishy going on with Hermione, and I have had enough of her acting strangely because of it! I am going to get to the bottom of this _tonight!_"

"That isn't fair Molly," Arthur said in a serious tone. "We have no evidence that there is anything wrong with Hermione. She could have very easily been ill like she said she had been…"

"Yes, but since when did Hermione take time off work to go to half way across the world for three weeks?" she retorted back. "It isn't like her at all! And as for her cousin's wedding – well… what a load of codswallop!"

"It's true actually," Luna piped up in her same dream-like voice. She twiddled her Butterbeer cork necklace in her fingers, examining it as she spoke. "The wedding was in Ireland, and I happened to bump into her at a pub she was staying in in Dublin."

"And how was she?" Harry and Tonks asked together. Concern for their friend was so evident on their faces, even changing Tonks' hair colour from a bubble-gum pink to a dark brown (the colour she went when she was worried). The room fell silent in apprehension as they waited to hear the answer.

"She was fine," Luna replied. "Like normal. Laughing, smiling, and talking about books…"

"In a pub?" Ron exclaimed incredulously, and they all shared warm smiles. Of course in a pub. Hermione could talk about books anywhere, never mind if the location was crammed with leering drunken males and pissed cousins from a wedding reception.

Just then, the door swung open and Sirius sauntered in. He must have had one hell of a week; he was wearing a leather jacket over a charcoal grey shirt (with four or five buttons undone at the top), black slacks and boots – it was his 'bad boy' motorbike outfit, and he certainly lived up to the image with his stubble scattered across his neck and jawline and his Azkaban tattoos peeking out from under his shirt. He had his helmet tucked under his arm and pushed back his black-brown shaggy hair with the other, only for it to fall back down again albeit more gracefully.

He smiled at them all and moved forwards to greet Molly and Arthur.

"Sorry I'm late," he said apologetically, "I got held up. It's a long story…"

The men chuckled whilst Molly shook her head and Tonks chose to ignore the redness of his lips and roll her eyes instead. She could see the pink lipstick on his collar. Trust Sirius to be late to dinner because he was doing _that_. With his gorgeous handsome-prince looks and being the first person ever to escape Azkaban (only then to be proved innocent of charges) as well as being the first person ever to fall _back_ through the veil, he was the Prophet's favourite bachelor, every female's (young or old) dream man, and every male's hero. He had hundreds of women flinging themselves at him and falling at his feet… but that didn't mean he had to sleep with _every one them!_

Though he would strongly deny this.

His eyes flickered round the table, and Harry thought he saw disappointment cloud over them. "Where's Hermione?" he asked, glancing back to Molly. "She's coming tonight, isn't she?"

"Supposedly," she said shrewdly, "but with her recent record, I think it's unlikely now."

"I don't understand why she's avoiding us," Harry murmured, as if he was talking to himself. "Whatever it is, she knows we'll be able to help her. After all we've been through, she must know that."

The room fell quiet for a few moments. Even Teddy stopped clapping his hands and shouting randomly. The stew boiling on the stove and Molly serving up was all that could be heard. Sirius fell into his chair when his plate was levitated to the table, followed by Arthur's and her own, and they all began to eat in silence. The ticking of the clock sounded abnormally louder than usual, as did the cutting of knives and forks on plates and the clinks of pints as they muttered a very unenthusiastic 'cheers'.

Remus was the first to speak. "I think someone should go to their flat… see what's going on...-"

"Yup," Ron agreed, rising from his chair immediately and tugging Harry's arm.

"-preferably Tonks or Luna," Remus clarified, sending the men a look. "Something tells me that this is a woman thing."

Sirius slammed his half empty pint of lager down as if the sound was announcing his presence. "What do you mean 'a woman thing' Moony? Usually people say that when they're talking about periods, the whole blood-in-their-knickers type thing…"

"Sirius mate, not when we're eating!" Ron wailed, and Tonks slapped her cousin on the forearm. Hard.

Sirius rubbed it better and glared at her. "And I deserved that how?"

Teddy pealed over with giggles, obviously finding what his Uncle Sirius had said very amusing. She sighed when the small boy wriggled and kicked helplessly in her arms, stretching his tiny arms out as far as he could in the hope that he would pick him up.

"Unca Siri!" he cried, "Unca Siri!"

"Sirius, could you not refrain yourself making him laugh until after dinner? He's all excited now," she sighed, allowing Teddy to crawl onto Sirius's lap.

"Oh relax Tonks, you're not exactly a ray of bloody sunshine this evening are you?" he said back, grinning widely when the toddler's hands cupped the back of his neck. Much to his displeasure, Teddy drooled on the front of his black shirt in the process, which made Tonks smirk at him and pat her son affectionately on the head. Remus was also holding back a chuckle.

"Save the snogging for when you're older Teds," Sirius told the boy, conjuring a tissue from the counter and wiping his shirt. "Do the same thing you did just then, but with pretty girls."

The men in the room all laughed whilst Tonks and Molly exchanged glances with cocked eyebrows and muttered something about bad influences. Sirius merely grinned. _Someone_ had to teach him the rules of life… and how to break them.

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><p>"So how shall I tell him? Just say it straight out-? 'I'm pregnant with your baby'… just like that?"<p>

Hermione had been pacing up and down in the living room for the last half an hour; the carpet was probably worn down by now. Ginny was sitting down on the sofa, trying to stay calm and collected for her friend's sake, even though inside she was still as shocked as she was the minute she found out. Hermione was having a _baby_ and she wasn't even with the father…no, wait a moment… - she wasn't even _friends_ with the father, who happened to be Sirius. And Sirius being a dad? Hermione was right. It was completely and utterly _laughable_.

"No don't say it like that," Ginny said. "It's too blunt. This is huge news and he's not going to be expecting it, so you have to ease him into it, not just blurt it out. Think of how he's going to react… It'll scare the crap out of him!"

"Somehow I think it'll be unexpected and he'll be scared _either way_ I say it," Hermione retorted in a snappy tone. Once again she raised her head to the ceiling and swore loudly. "We used a _contraceptive_ spell Gin! To stop things like _this_ happening! Why didn't it work?"

"I don't know Herms, sometimes these things happen…"

"Not to me they don't!"

"You've got to go and tell him now-"

"Absolutely not! I can't-!"

"It's the right thing Hermione-"

"_What on earth is going on?_"

In their shouting, they hadn't noticed Tonks and Luna step out of the fireplace, having flooed from the Burrow. Hermione spun on the spot when she saw the source of the voice and peeked at them through gaps in her fingers. When she thought the situation couldn't get any more complicated… it had.

Ginny leapt from her seat and stared at them. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to check on you because you didn't turn up for dinner," Tonks said. "Lucky we did," she looked at Hermione with a deep concern only a mother could have. "Hermione sweetheart, what's the matter?"

They were going to find out soon enough. There was no point in wasting any more time.

She dropped her hands and took a deep breath. "I just found out…" she told them. "I'm having a baby and...-"

"CONGRATULATIONS!" Luna exclaimed excitedly. The others watched as she clasped her hands together and happily pranced on her toes like a fairy over to Hermione. "What wonderful news!" she hugged her tightly, totally unaware of the situation at hand. "What's the gender? Do you know?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Tonks cried her eyes wide and bulging. She held her arms out to indicate a pause. "Let's go back a few steps shall we?" she glanced at Luna and back at Hermione. "I was thinking more… _who's the daddy?_"

Hermione shut her eyes for a mini second but opened them straight after. She was being a total coward about the whole thing when what she had to do was face up to it – face the facts – accept it. So that's what she would do.

"It's Sirius's."

Her reaction was more-or-less the same as Ginny's was. "WHAT! Sirius as in Sirius _Sirius?_ Sirius _BLACK?" _when Hermione nodded shakily, Tonks shook her head in apology and pulled her young friend into a hug, cradling her against her chest. "Oh darling this is such a shock! I - I didn't even know you _slept_ together! You and _Sirius_… you're always fighting-!"

"Sexual tension," Luna nodded knowingly, a cheeky glisten in her eye. "I could always feel it around you and Stubby… always bubbling beneath the surface… that time in the Leaky Cauldron, when you told Stubby he was a womaniser and to fuck off back to Rosmerta, I haven't seen him so angry before… and the time when Stubby said he bet you read all your sexual intercourse tips in a book from the library, you went mad and didn't speak to him for weeks… it was all sexual tension you see… there was always going to be a time when one of you eventually snapped and gave in to the sexual intercourse."

Tonks expression had changed from one of shock to thoughtful and then amused. It seemed they were all thinking the same thing: they all under-estimated how clever Luna was. She was a quiet observer of people. She gave the impression she was in another world, but in reality, she never missed a thing.

"You know Luna," Tonks said, "you are right. Why haven't I noticed it before? Was the sexual intercourse just the one time 'Mione?"

Hermione, Ginny and Tonks all exchanged glances before laughing, purely at the absurdity of it all. _Sexual intercourse_. Only Luna could call it by its proper name and now she had got Tonks started on it too…

"It was once yes, but no, I'm not and have never been attracted to the man whatsoever. If I was given the opportunity to punch him in the face, I would."

"I think you already have," Ginny pointed out and they all nodded in reminiscence.

Tonks raised her eyebrows and smiled. "Well one thing's for sure… this child is going to be one hell of a little fighter." The others agreed, Hermione somewhat gloomily. Ginny, Tonks and Luna shared apologetic expressions and gathered her up in a group hug.

"You'll be fine Hermione," Tonks assured her. "Sometimes in life these things happen. When you're young and naïve you think that when you grow up life will run smoothly, you'll graduate from university, you'll get your dream job, bump into your Prince Charming and have a white wedding… but life isn't like that. It's not all wrapped up in bows – things go wrong. It's about you making the most of what happens… bringing out the good from a bad situation. So however shit this may feel right now Hermione, it won't be like that forever. Trust me. My husband is a werewolf. I am an expert when it comes to potentially bad situations." She smiled tenderly and Hermione felt a spark of hope in her words. "How are you going to tell him?"

That was what she has been worrying about, (among many, many other things obviously), but how to tell Sirius that she was pregnant was at the top of her list. She felt the tears sting her eyes for the umpteenth time, and shrugged her shoulders, helpless with bewilderment. "I have no – no idea…"

"Just tell him that his sperm swam up your uterus and fertilised your egg," Luna shrugged, as if it was the most obvious thing ever. "He'll completely understand."

Hermione didn't know if it was possible to laugh and cry at the same time, but she did then.

"Probably a bit too factual Luna."

* * *

><p>Sirius was standing in the back garden with Remus leaning against the wall as he took a draw from his cigarette. It was dark now and so cold that they could see their breath blowing in front of them when they spoke.<p>

"Doesn't feel like Christmas does it?" Sirius said, his eyes roaming the dark sky. "Even with all the snow…"

Remus inclined his head in thought. "It kind of does for me. We've been shopping for Teddy's presents from Father Christmas," he pulled a pained expression. "It's a parent's worse time of year."

Sirius smiled. "Yeah but I bet all the trooping from shop to shop is worth it when the little lad opens his presents. The look of excitement on his face…" he laughed, being able to imagine it now. "Oh, by the way, I bought him a toy motorbike. Is that okay? It doesn't go very fast, so if he gets a head concussion it won't be from the bike."

Remus laughed loudly and thanked him. They weren't exactly a well-off family, and sometimes it was difficult to be able to afford all the demands of a four year old, and so they were hugely grateful to Sirius when he spoiled Teddy with cool presents. On every birthday and every Christmas there was a present from his Uncle, and the boy had become well aware to save it till last, because it was usually the best.

"So who's the girl you were shagging before you came over?" Remus asked, always interested and somewhat amused by Sirius's love life, because he changed his women more than his pants. In fact, Sirius didn't have a 'love life' – he had never been in love – so really 'shag life' would be a more accurate term. Casual, no strings attached sex, and that was how he liked it, (partly because it was all he had ever known).

"She's called Maria, really nice girl," Sirius replied, turning sideways at him and smirking slightly. "_Fabulous_ tits Remus. They're so big that when she's on top and you know, they're bobbing up and down, I swear they could knock her out."

Remus chuckled. "They sound a bit too big if you ask me. I like them when they're not small, not big but right in the middle."

"Me too," Sirius agreed whole-heartedly. "Hermione's made me practically drool. I'm telling you, they were _out of this world,_ fitted right into my hand," he paused to close his eyes, like he was visualising them in his head."Completely - _completely_ perfect."

Remus stared at him as if he had grown three heads. "Did you... did you just say _Hermione?_"

Sirius quickly glanced at his friend and swallowed hard. _Fuck_. _Had he?_ He hadn't meant to say her name…

"Sirius?" Remus seethed in a warning voice. "When have you ever felt Hermione's breasts!"

Sirius dropped his cigarette on the floor and immediately took out another one. He was so nervous he needed something to do with his hands. "Not that Hermione," he lied, "another Hermione… Hermione Higgins."

It was the first name that popped into his head. He didn't know a Hermione Higgins, and evidently Remus, who was eyeing him suspiciously, suspected as much.

"And where did you meet this Hermione Higgins?" he asked sceptically.

"The pub obviously."

"Oh of course! The _pub!_" he grinned, and then dropped the smile completely. "Stop bullshitting Sirius!" he growled. "You slept with Hermione didn't you? …_Our_ Hermione! That's why she's been avoiding everyone for the past two months!" he hit him on the shoulder. "You barstard Sirius! How could you be so reckless?"

Sirius had went to light his cigarette but stopped and glared at him. "Oh, wow, I'm not even going to answer that," he began hotly, his cigarette shaking in his lips as his spoke. "Reckless my arse… I – _we_ did nothing wrong! It takes two to do what we did you know, and I didn't hear her complaining or telling me to stop! She wanted to just as much as I did and I don't regret it!" he whisper-shouted. "In case you haven't noticed Remus, she's an adult! She can do whatever she wants!"

"Yes she can! She decided to sleep with you and now she's gone! You've messed up this whole extended family because you couldn't keep it in your pants! She's your Godson's age Sirius! Surely when you hear that in your head you think, 'No stop, I can't have sex with her, this is wrong' but you didn't, and when it comes to women you never do!"

"Bullshit!" Sirius hissed, but Remus cut him off.

"One day mate, your reckless sleeping around will come back to bite you in the arse, and when that day comes I'll be able to say I told you so!" he turned on the spot and went back inside, leaving Sirius alone and fuming and muttering the word 'bullshit' under his breath.


	3. Now or Never

_A/N: A MAHOOSIVE thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Love all your predictions and opinions, some of them really cracked me up :) please share your thoughts and any questions you may have! You should know by now, that I reply. And pretty damn prompt too, I'd like to add.._

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><p>Chapter 3: <em><strong>Now Or Never<strong>_

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><p>"Ready?" Luna asked her, rubbing her forearm comfortingly.<p>

Hermione could've laughed.

I mean really…What sort of question is that? A hundred years could pass and she still wouldn't be ready. Telling someone you didn't like that you were having their baby came under the list of things you _had_ to do, whether you wanted to or not. Inside her a teeny tiny embryo was growing into a baby - her and Sirius's baby. So, as Ginny had annoyingly reminded her many times, she didn't have a choice.

Hermione breathed out and looked up at her friends who had supported her through everything – Ginny, Tonks and Luna. Inside they were probably shitting themselves as much as she was, (perhaps not Luna), but were putting on a re-assuring face for her sake - which she appreciated more than anything.

She nodded and shook out her hands, as if flinging the nerves from them. It didn't work, but it made her feel better. "More ready than I'll ever be," she confirmed. "Let's just get this over with."

She stepped towards the fireplace and placed her foot in the sooty crate and turned around again. "However it goes…I won't forget how much you girls helped me today. You put up with my tantrums and dried my tears…" she looked at Luna. "And even made me laugh. All of you… thank you so, so much…"

Her friends exchanged amused looks. "She's pregnant, she's bound to get emotional," Tonks reasoned, "but a _speech _however!" she chortled, "my, my, MY Hermione Granger aren't you a softie?"

"I was actually being seri-" she stopped abruptly, seeing the joke that would inevitably come, as it always did. The girls were grinning at her knowingly, and she couldn't help but laugh and shake her head. "I was going to say I was actually being_genuine_."

"Seriously?" Tonks baited, winking slyly at her and causing her to shake her head and laugh.

"That joke doesn't make sense," Luna told them all. "Sirius's name isn't spelt in the way that you meant, and even if it was... he's called Stubby."

Hermione saw Luna's wonderful wrap-up of the conversation line as her cue to go, and with one last watery smile, she dropped the glittery silver floo powder to the floor and cried:_'The Burrow!'_

She landed in the toasty living room and blinked rapidly through her fuzzy eyesight; blurry shapes became squashy sofas and poufy cushions. Everything was so Weasley! Speaking of which…

"HERMIONE!" several people shouted, (and she was certain she heard a high-pitched scream too), the whole redhead clan came rushing in, and practically bundled her to the floor. Harry was amongst them, as was little Teddy, who's hair was flashing multi-coloured with all the sudden excitement. She could barely breathe from all the cuddles and kisses.

"Hermione! How have you been dear?!" Molly cried, "You've certainly been a busy bee to say the least! You must tell us everything you've been up to! You're looking incredibly thin too darling, what have I told you?!"

"I don't eat enough," she chorused, and smiled and hugged her second-mother. "Lovely to see you Molly. It's great to be back."

"How was Australia Mione?" Ron's giddy voice spoke in her right ear, "You're really tanned-"

Was she? She hadn't even noticed.

"I heard everyone out there goes swimming with a plank of wood!"

"It's called surfing Ron," Harry corrected him, and the twins laughed.

"We've missed you Hermione, probably a bit too much. Some would call it unhealthy, how much we've been thinking of you…"

"I was showing them pictures of our holiday in France," Ginny's voice came from behind her, having just flooed in. "In a lot of them, you were wearing a bikini." She rolled her eyes, as if that sentence said it all.

"How were your parents?" Harry asked, kissing her on the forehead. "And how was your cousin's wedding? Which cousin was it getting married by the way? You never said…"

"It was Elizabeth," she told him, "and my parents – excluding the fact that they nearly blinded me with their insanely shiny sparkly teeth – they were fine."

Harry grinned and nodded. Remus was next, bounding up to her and enveloping her in a hug. "It's lovely to see you Hermione, we've missed you sweetheart. Especially Teddy," he murmured in her ear and she laughed heartily when the boy came running over, as if on cue.

"AUNT 'MIONE, AUNT 'MIONE!"

He slammed into her leg so hard she nearly toppled over and Fred had to catch her, which of course, he didn't mind doing. "Any other time you need saving love, give me a call," he said, wiggling his eyebrows and winking at her.

She smacked him in return.

"Aunt 'Mione!" Teddy repeated, pulling on her jeans to get her attention.

"Oh, hello you!" she cooed, "Don't you look handsome!" she glanced incredulously up at Remus and Tonks. "Hasn't he grown?! Oh my goodness…" They nodded in a 'Bloody hell, we've noticed!' kind of way and she chuckled and cupped the boy's cheeks. "Have you been behaving for your mummy and daddy, Teds?"

"Sometimes," he replied cheekily and Remus and Tonks fondly rolled their eyes. "I've missed you lots and lots," the boy added matter-of-factly.

"Aw, well I've missed you lots and lots too..." she said and poked him playfully in the chest. "You haven't ditched me and got a new girlfriend have you?"

He shook his head vigorously. "No! I did you a drawing. It's at my house. I used my new set of crayons that Uncle Siri got me."

"_Bought me_ Teddy," Remus told him, but his son wasn't listening.

"Miioneeee… do you know what Uncle Siri got – _bought_ – me for Christmas? He won't tell me and I want to know!" he whimpered, his nose scrunched in upset.

Hermione smiled and flattened his mop of hair. "I'm afraid I don't know sweetie, but if I find out," she leaned in to his ear. "I'll tell you right away!"

"I heard that," said a familiar voice, and she spun around feeling like a deer caught in head lights.

"Sirius!" she exclaimed, trying to will down the thumping of her heart. "I didn't – didn't see you there…"

Sirius, the man himself, was sitting on the sofa, his head resting on the back and his legs spread wide apart like a dog lying out in the sun. He looked just as he did last time she saw him – his black-brown hair mussed, his jawline unshaven, donning that same leather bloody jacket and same bloody boots, even showing off the same amount of chest-tattoos he was before… on the night that changed everything.

She bit her lip to stop herself calling him a git.

"Are you Hermione? Or is it someone using Polyjuice potion? God woman, I didn't think I'd ever see you again," he said, leaning forwards to examine her closer.

"You're such a child," she replied. This time she couldn't stop herself, and the jolly, high spirited chit-chatter that filled the room trailed into silence.

His face hardened and jaw clenched. "Let's go outside shall we?" though it wasn't a question. He stood up and grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her from the room. Remus shot him a look of warning on his way out, which Sirius chose to ignore, and Tonks mouthed a good luck to Hermione. There was no doubt that she would need it.

As soon as the backdoor shut Molly switched to interrogation mode. "Have they had another argument?" she questioned everyone. "What's happened? Honestly – those two… I've never known anything like it! What's going on? Come on! _Spill!_"

No one answered.

Outside and out of ear shot, Sirius wasted no time rounding on Hermione.

"Two months!" he seethed, "two months you've been gone! I've been walking on fucking eggshells ever since you left! You know, you could have had the decency to come to visit once in a while instead of cutting everyone out of your life-"

"Cutting everyone out of my life? Don't be ridiculous! I've been _busy!_ Unlike you, I have a thing called a job, it's what grown up people have to earn money," she explained, and Sirius growled menacingly, though she pretended she hadn't heard it. "We're not all from a rich family you know, I have to work my backside off and what do you do Sirius? Hmm? Apart from going to the pub, smoking and sleeping around of course. They don't count."

Evidently, she had hit a nerve. Sirius was reeling.

"DON'T!" he roared, stepping closer to her to emphasise his point. "DON'T YOU DARE PATRONISE ME HERMIONE, I DON'T DESERVE IT… NOT FROM YOU!" he was so angry he was panting. "And – and sleeping around?! SAVE IT! I've already had that bloody lecture from Remus!"

Less than an hour ago, in the exact spot they were standing in now.

"…And you can stop lying about 'being too busy with work' as well," he told her, undeterred. "I know you've been avoiding me! How much of a fool do you think I am? I haven't seen you since…"

Memories of that night started flooding back to her, the salty smell of sweat, the rubbing of flesh on flesh, the held eye contact… the way his rough hands that were so deliciously _masculine_ touched her body, the way hers were clenched in fists in his hair… she whispered and whimpered and he hissed and swore loud profanities.

She swallowed hard and met his eyes again like they had done back then. He thought about it, she knew he did. He was thinking about it now, just as she was.

Hermione sighed. "Look. I'm not sorry for leaving. Can you imagine how I felt when I woke up in your bed and we were naked and – and it's _you,_ Sirius!" She shook her head in frustration. "I didn't know what to do. Leaving seemed like the best option. You must understand that."

He stared at her for a long moment, letting her words wash over him. "No I don't understand it," he finally said. "I can't get my head around it. By leaving you've made this whole thing worse when it didn't have to be. We could have been back to normal by now but instead-"

"We're arguing. I'd say that's normal," she muttered bitterly. He didn't disagree. "It's irrelevant how it happened, but it did. A lot changed that night and we can't change that so… so we're just going to have to get through this sensibly and maturely."

She wasn't talking entirely about the sex anymore… more of the consequence _of_ it.

Sirius looked like he'd been slapped.

"You regret it?" he yelled. "Is that what you're telling me now? For the love of-"

"No!" she shouted back, reaching for his arm. "Stop jumping to conclusions for once!" she quietened down and bowed her head to the floor nervously. "I wasn't talking about _that._"

"Then what? What were you talking about?" he demanded hotly.

She threw him a dirty look, which quickly turned teary when she thought of what she was about to reveal. It felt like a scene from a movie, not her life.

He saw the change in her, and all anger disappeared like sand through his fingers.

"I'm sorry I shouted. I didn't mean to upset you," he murmured, stepping closer to her.

She shook her head. "That's not it Sirius."

Suddenly he was stroking her hair, tucking the loose strands behind her ear, and she was letting him. She had been in the company of this kind, gentle Sirius before when she was upset; it had led to achingly slow kisses, neck bites and low moans. It wasn't going to end that way tonight.

"Then what?" he whispered, "tell me."

He raised her chin and their soft eyes met, lingered… the thunderstorm gaze in his eyes was an unspoken love of hers that she didn't want to remember. It only made it harder, knowing that the raw tenderness there would vanish in a minute and – she didn't know how he'd look at her then.

She buried her face in her arms.

"Mione, look at me."

His voice was firmer now as he caught her hands and moved them away. He didn't let go of them; not even when she found the bravery to look at him again. He intertwined their fingers and gently pressed his lips to her forehead.

She could've sobbed outright then.

"There's something else…" she whispered, her eyes flicking to his warm ones. "I'm… I'm…"

"Just say it love."

The rustling of the trees from the nippy December wind was the only noise to be heard as he waited for her to speak. She swallowed hard and took a deep breath. This was it. Now or never. She glanced up at him. All she could remember thinking was that she wouldn't cry.

"I'm… eating for two Sirius." She bit her lip and decided the blunt option was best. She thought perhaps if she said it quicker it wouldn't hurt as much. "I'm pregnant."

He cocked his eyebrow and shot her a quizzical look, as if waiting for her to say _'Only joking!' -_ But the punch line never came and the longer he waited, the more his expression fell.

"It's yours," she muttered, so quietly it was a wonder he heard it. He stared at her, silent and still and in complete and utter shock. His eyes were wide and mouth agape and he stood, frozen on the spot, for _minutes._

"Sirius say something," she pleaded, gripping onto the lapels of his jacket and shaking him.

He said nothing.

"Sirius!"

A slam of a door announced the two returning from outside, and the occupants of the living room paused in their conversations to turn to see the two enter, hopefully having sorted out their latest argument and sporting wide smiles, but maybe they were expecting too much. Listening harder, they heard only one set of footsteps, and the faint roars of an engine from outside. The door swung open and Hermione entered alone, fighting back tears.

Tonks dropped Teddy's bottle and rushed over to her. "What happened love?"

Ginny also ran to her side. "How did he take it?" she asked, though even she knew it was a silly question. The answer was obvious.

"Take what?" Molly quizzed them. "For heaven's sake, WHAT'S GOING ON?!" Her cheeks were burning red with suppressed anger, which made even Fred and George exchange uneasy looks.

"Molly that's quite enough," Arthur said quietly but firmly. "It is none of our business. They are both adults, I'm sure they can sort it out themselves."

No one said a word, and the fiery red-head was sure to burst any moment. Always the peace-maker in a tense atmosphere, Remus spoke first. "Where's Sirius?"

Hermione's breath hitched just hearing the name, and Luna pranced over to her to join in the girls group hug. "Hermione?" he probed.

"He's gone."

"Gone?" he repeated, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. It wasn't like Sirius to up and leave a family gathering; especially so near to Christmas. "Gone where?"

She fixed him with a look. "The place he spends more time in than his home," she snapped in a biting tone that could match dear Bellatrix.

Remus sighed and dashed out the door, squeezing her shoulder in comfort on the way past. Whatever the two of them had argued about, Remus did say that the day would come where his wicked ways would come back to bite him in the arse, and he had a sneaky suspicion that today was that day.

He reached the apparition point at the top of the hill. Off to the pub it was then…


	4. Drowning his Sorrows about Tomorrow

_A/N: Wow, I love all you people! I really, really do. I'm sending my enormous thanks and gratitude through the laptop screen because that is the closest I can get to a hug in real life :) I'd also like to announce that my love for Gary Oldman has got to the extreme where it is ridiculous. I reminding myself constantly that actually, I've never met him, will never meet him and he is 53. Haha! But I'm digressing. D_o you think Sirius's reaction is accurate to his character? As always, share your thoughts and I will get back to you.__

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><p>Chap 4: <em><strong>Drowing his Sorrows about the Bringing of Tomorrow<strong>_

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><p>Remus pushed open the doors of the Three Broomsticks and stepped inside. He was wrapped in a woollen scarf and coat as it was snowing heavily outside, and the warmth of the pub hit him straight away, tingling his body from the tips of his fingers to his toes. It was like drinking butterbeer…a drink he would order straight after he found Sirius.<p>

He wasn't hard to find. His oldest friend was slumped in the corner of the pub sitting on a stool and leaning on the bar with two rather large shots of firewhisky, one of which was empty. His head was bowed to the counter, making it difficult for the busty witch watching him across the bar to catch his eye. Remus sighed as he watched him pick up the second glass, gaze at it with a lazy boredom, swirl it for a few seconds and then knock it back. Drinking away his troubles instead of dealing with them. It was so predictable Sirius. He had been like this for as long as he could remember; and from him he learned that it was true what they say. Old habits _do_ die hard.

He approached and slid in the stool next to him. "Two shots in cup-sized glasses and all in less than ten minutes. Must have been an intense argument," he murmured. Sirius didn't even bother turning to look at him. "What happened? You want to talk about it?"

Sirius grimaced and signalled to Rosmerta for another two drinks. "Straight vodka," he told her, slamming down some coins and ignoring the raised eyebrows from his friend.

"I take it you were arguing about that night… on Halloween…" he said tentatively, trying to pry him of some answers, which was strange. Usually when Sirius was down and he had a bottle in his hand he couldn't shut up about anything.

He didn't answer, so Remus pushed further. "What did she say? Did she explain why she left?"

Rosmerta placed his drinks on the counter and looked enquiringly at him. He quickly responded that he would like a butterbeer and turned back to Sirius, who was knocking back his vodka in gulps and still hadn't spoken a single word to him.

"Come on Sirius mate." He rubbed his shoulder, urging him to speak. "You've had so many arguments with her, why are you so worked up about this one?"

He shook his head, in a 'don't go there' kind of way and covered his eyes with one hand. Remus could feel from the hand on his shoulder that he was shaking, whether in anger or upset or both. Hermione had certainly knocked him for six whatever it was, that was for sure.

"Just tell me," Remus said simply, and again Sirius stayed silent with his eyes locked on the counter. His patience was wearing thin and finally he sighed. "Sirius, for goodness sake-!"

Sirius turned to look at him, his jaw clenched. "Just leave it alright? I don't want to talk about it!" he snapped, then buried his face in his hands, muttering to himself. "I _can't _– talk about it… I came here to drown my sorrows because I wanted to, is that alright? Am I too reckless to even have a drink now? Oh Moony, just go back will you? Tell everyone that I'm fine and everything's fine and that _I'll be home before twelve_…" he mimicked, and glowered at his empty glass as if it had insulted him.

"But you won't be will you?" Remus said. He accepted his butterbeer from Rosmerta but didn't take a sip from it; he was too busy trying to make Sirius to see some sense. "You won't be fine, everything's not fine and you won't be home soon. You'll drink so much you won't know what your own bloody name is and you'll end up sleeping with…" he glanced around the pub and nodded at the heavily made-up woman still trying to catch his friend's eye. "…That girl. I know what you're like Sirius, you've been like it since we were eleven."

"Oh fuck off Moony!" he howled. "Sleeping around at the age of eleven? Are you off your hinges? I was good but was never _that_ fucking good!" he growled, pointing a threatening finger to his chest. Remus wasn't the least surprised. He always got aggressive when he was drunk. Well, more aggressive than he was usually anyway…

"Look," Remus reasoned. "Just tell me what Hermione said-" he groaned and his eyes fell shut at the mention of her name, "AND THEN I _swear _I will leave you alone. If you want me to."

Sirius fell quiet again, and Remus could see he was thinking something over. As the seconds wore on he could see the change of emotions so clearly on his face, it was like a time-line playing out in front of him; his eyes transformed from darkened to fathomless to watery with woe, and right on cue, before he could even look up, Rosmerta slid him another two shots across the bar with a friendly wink and a whisper of _'they're on the house'_ in his ear.

He had raised the glass to his lips and downed the liquid before Remus could stop him and he huffily cursed the land-lady under his breath. She was only be nice of course, but giving Sirius more alcohol was not something he needed right now. He was already the definition of pain in the arse as he was and when drunk, it became only more apparent.

He reached for the second drink and Remus grabbed his arm.

"Enough is enough Sirius."

"It's not," he mumbled.

"It is!" Remus cried, gripping his arm so tight his knuckles clenched white.

Sirius half turned to him and shook his head. "It's not," he said again, and let out a shaky breath that turned into a humourless drunken chuckle. "She's pregnant Remus."

Remus's jaw dropped. "_Hermione?_" he slackened and almost fell off his stall. "She's – _p-pregnant?_"

Sirius giggled harder and slapped his knee as he nodded. "She's having a baby and…" he slumped his head to the table and his laughter turned muffled in his arms. "And it's…" _Oh God. Oh no. _Remus knew what was coming and suddenly he became aware that his friend's body wasn't shaking with laughter – it never was – somewhere along the way he had started crying.

"And it's mine," he choked out, shaking with sobs.

Remus was always so together in tough situations, but this time he was truly lost for words. He just stared on at Sirius as tears welled in his grey eyes that were filled with pain.

"I can't do this," he whispered, grief-stricken.

Remus swallowed and tried to will the shock away, but it didn't work. Nothing could make this situation seem anything less big than it was. "What do you mean by that?" he asked.

"I mean I can't do this," he croaked. "I can't stay here."

"Why not?"

"Because she's keeping it and I – I can't…" his cheeks were streaked with tears and he swore under his breath and made to stand up, but Remus pushed him firmly back down. Rosmerta shot them a worried glance, and the girl across the bar's eyes widened at Sirius's fierceness, no doubt finding it sexy.

"What can't you get your head around about this? So this is big news-"

"Understatement of the century mate," he hissed darkly. "I'm brave, but for this, I'm not brave enough…"

"Yes you are!" Remus assured him, "whatever is holding you back you must drop it right now." He felt rather like a passionate speaker at a school assembly. "Of course this will change a lot of things but you can get through it! You always do!"

Sirius glanced up at him, the pain and sorrow evident on his features more than ever before. "This is different… I'm not cut out for this Moony," he told him hoarsely. "I'm not you… you've always been the caring guy who makes everyone cups of tea. And I'm the bloke who sits with his feet up on the table drinking whisky. I'm not a nice person and everyone knows it… I've hurt everyone I've ever cared for 'cause it's who I am and it's what I do, and then… then I get this news," he buried his face into his hands as if re-playing the memory of the two of them outside. "Kids never crossed my mind – it was something that would happen to everyone else but not to me… you know I'm not the family man and I can't pretend I am, so I accepted that I wouldn't have children and I've been fine with that – glad even… I know I wouldn't make a good dad… and now… and now this has happened – and – and I know everything I thought I was right about! I just can't do it Remus! You say so yourself that I'm not responsible enough, got fuck all maturity and in general I'm a complete waste of space-"

"I have never said that!" Remus started up angrily.

"You didn't have to! I know that Molly and Tonks see me as the bad influence on Teddy, and I know you do too, with the women and the drinking and everything else. But you were right about me Moony! My sleeping around has come back to bite me in the arse hasn't it? I'm not even _with_ Hermione, I never will be, we don't like each other and yet she's… Hermione… she's…" his voice cracked with emotion. "I'm going to be a _dad_. And I can't… I just _can't_…"

"Why can't you?"

He stared at him incredulously. "Look at me Remus," he muttered, gesturing bitterly to himself. "What good have I ever done in my life? I've screwed up everything. The one thing I promised James and Lily, I fucked up. I wasn't there for Harry when he needed me, and I missed the war…" fresh tears trickled down his cheeks and reached for another drink. "Sometimes I just feel that everyone I care for would be better off without me… and this baby would be the same," he sniffled in a small voice. "I feel sorry for them for being made from a part of me."

Remus' heart broke for his friend that had been through so much, and he found himself shaking his head fiercely with protection. "No!" he shouted. "No, you stop right there Sirius! How can you even say such a thing? You're being ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous! You – are - not – a bad – person-!" he bashed his fist against the counter on every word to emphasise his point.

"But I'm not a good one either," he said heavily.

The urge to hit Sirius passed through him in that moment. Why couldn't he see things the way he saw it? This child could change Sirius for the better, and be the break-through for him after a lifetime of bad luck; but of course, Sirius had thrown himself into the pit of self-pity and it was going to take a lot of grilling to pull him back out.

"No one blames you for anything. You don't appreciate yourself, and you need to! We all love you the way you are, because without you we know that there would be much less laughter in our lives." When Sirius didn't look convinced by this comment, Remus nodded in assurance. "It's true. We need you in this dysfunctional family of ours. You were gone for five years, and not a day went by when you weren't missed by all of us."

Sirius half-smiled and shook his head. "Hermione didn't miss me."

"She did," he argued, "We all did. And I'm pretty sure that child of yours will miss you too if you walk out on them Sirius." He looked at him pointedly. "Hermione can't do this alone. You need to come back and talk to her about it maturely, adult-to-adult."

"And say what? Discuss the cost of buggies and baby clothes?" He threw his head back in amused disbelief. "No! I can't come back, we'd end up arguing like we always do and I can't deal with that right now…" he kicked his chair back and stood up, "I just-" he raked two shaking hands through his hair in frustration. "I CAN'T FUCKING DO THIS!" in his built up anger he punched the wall and hurtled across the room to a bulky man who was listening in on their conversation.

"SIRIUS!" Remus roared, leaping from his seat and running after him. Sirius had already head butted the man and shoved him roughly against the wall with his collar, and was currently colouring him with every name under the sun. The man was built like a rugby player, but Sirius was unfazed by it. He sent a punch hard into the man's stomach, and the man doubled over in agony with a red-face burning with rage. Remus couldn't watch how the man would retaliate. His fist raised and sliced through the air so fast it was a blur and slammed against Sirius's jaw.

Women screamed as his head threw back at the contact, followed by the crunch and the sickening, resounding noise of a bone snapping. Remus watched in fear as he stumbled, swayed and fell against the table, smashing a number of glasses in the process. He rolled onto the floor, broken like a rag doll and lay motionless in a scattering of broken shards.

The room fell into silence.

"Oh shit," Remus breathed, dashing to where his friend lay and dropping to his knees. "Sirius! SIRIUS!" Rosmerta wasn't far behind. She immediately hit the beast of a man with a nasty hex that knocked him off his feet and flung him out the pub doors.

Sirius looked awful. With his heavy consumption of alcohol in so little time and the force of the punch he had been knocked unconscious. His handsome face was smeared with blood gushing from his mouth, lip and nose, and Remus exchanged a horrified glance with Rosmerta as their eyes swivelled to the pool of blood trickling along the floor by his head. She gently lifted it up to see where the source of blood was coming from.

"Deep gash," she informed him, closing her eyes briefly as she lowered his head back to the floor. She furrowed her eyebrows in concern. "Why was he so angry? I saw him crying and then…"

"He found out tonight that someone's expecting his first child," he told her miserably. "He blames himself because he doesn't think he'll be a good dad."

They both stared down at Sirius, with his ripped shirt, tattoos, and silky black-brown locks that had become matted in wet blood. He looked like he had fought in a world war, and Remus and Rosmerta shared another silent look that spoke many words.

_Maybe he was right._


	5. The Great Escape Attempt

Chap 5: _**The Great Escape Attempt**_

* * *

><p>Considering how she <em>could<em> have reacted to the news, Molly Weasley was not as angry as Hermione expected. She was a bit breathless and teary, and there were mutterings of Sirius being a "this and that" under her breath. However, apart from that, she was very supportive and surprisingly understanding about the whole thing. Although for Harry, Ron, Fred, and George this was not the case. It was all going fine when she asked them to sit down, even better when she told them she was having a baby; it was when they found out that the father was Sirius that they threw an almighty uproar.

"Sirius?" Ron gasped, his mouth agape and hanging. "Sirius… is the father…of your baby…"

He appeared to be having some kind of asthma attack, and Hermione fought the temptation to roll her eyes and settled for a stiff nod instead. There was a minute where no one spoke. It was the kind of unbearable silence where you could hear a pin drop, but then it vanished and the shouting began.

"_I can't believe it-!_"

"You're having a _baby_-"

"And _Sirius_ is the father-!"

"You're twenty-fucking-_one!_"

"When I see him-"

"-I'm going to kill that bloody git!"

"YOU! AND – AND _HIM!_"

"Where is he? WHERE IS HE?!"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!"

This carried on for a while longer. Hermione stood awkwardly by with her hands clasped together and head bowed to the floor, waiting as calmly and as patiently as she could whilst the red-heads let out their anger and shock. She wasn't upset. After all, they were always going to hit the roof whoever's baby it was. No, more than anything she felt overwhelmingly guilty and stupid for falling pregnant in the first place. The fact that it was with _Sirius_, Harry's godfather, made the situation a worst case scenario, an outrageous nightmare.

She peeked up at Harry. He was standing on the edge of the group and resembling a white-sheeted ghost. His hands were in his pockets and she could see the bulge of his fists clenched with … anger? Whatever it was he stayed quiet for the whole commotion. It wasn't till he moved over and gently placed a hand on the Weasley boy's shoulders that the racket finally ceased.

"We'll talk to him," he said firmly. "Ask him what he was thinking when-"

"HE HAD SEX WITH MY EX-GIRLFRIEND!" Ron bellowed, swiping the air with a punch.

Hermione leant her head up to the ceiling, as if willing God to give her some patience. If Ron thought he could fight Sirius, he was being pathetic.

"This is no one's business but Sirius and Hermione's," Tonks snapped at him, lowering Teddy to the floor and using his cuddly toy as a scolding tool. "You are being pathetically childish about this you know that Ron? You'd better drop the stroppy act now, start accepting the fact that what has happened has happened, and there's nothing you can do about it… AND while you're doing _that_, why don't you learn to get – a - grip?!"

Hermione had to fight the urge to grin – she could always trust Tonks to shut anyone up if she wasn't willing to herself. Ron quietened down, his furious yells being replaced by heavy breathing as he stood, fists clenched and pacing. Ron's reaction was just typical Ron… the shouting, the empty threats, the big hoo-ha. To an extent, she understood. They were together for ages, (though the build-up of it took twice the time) and they broke up less than a year ago. So to find out that your ex-girlfriend was pregnant with Sirius Black's baby was quite huge, but it was done. At that moment, as she sat on the sofa observing him with eyes itching with tiredness, her head whirring with worry for where Sirius was, what he was doing, and whether he had passed out drunk yet; she just couldn't bring herself to care about Ron and his little tantrums.

A crash sounded from the hallway and Arthur slowly rose out of his seat. If a crash usually occurred in their house it was either the old, uneven umbrella stand toppling over on the porch or the twins huddled together in their room stirring up their latest joke-shop product of pranking or mass destruction. It wasn't the latter, for the twins were standing in the room with them, so that left the umbrella stand being the cause of the noise…which meant that someone must have been outside to knock it over.

"Sirius! He's out here!" cried a voice from the hallway.

The front door slammed shut and the occupants of the room shared puzzled looks before following out into the dark hall. When they got there, they were thrown into darkness and had to fumble around to find their way to the silhouette of Remus, who was standing shakily with someone slung over his shoulders. It could have been a horror film, the way his limbs dangled in the shadows, as loose as a dead corpse's. When it hit home that it was Sirius, Hermione's heart stopped. They couldn't see his face, though they didn't have to. From the trail of dripping blood on the stone floor, it was clear that something wasn't quite right.

Arthur, Molly, Tonks and Harry all rushed forwards to help Remus stay upright as they lowered Sirius from his back. The twins reluctantly stepped forwards too to carry him into the living room where they managed to lay him across the sofa Hermione had been sitting on. Ron, however, didn't budge. He was in a foul mood and felt no obligation to help out the man he had once got on with and admired so much. For Ron, idolising Sirius- 'the wizarding world's most sinfully handsome womaniser' stopped when he spent a night under the bed sheets with his ex-girlfriend. The two were polar opposites, barely acquaintances, chalk and cheese. How any form of intimacy happened at all between them was beyond him.

"I had to – to carry him here," Remus panted breathlessly as everyone gathered around him and raised their hand to their mouth in shock. He looked dreadful. "His head is split open at the back, and his nose is broken. The guy was built like a rugby player…" was the only explanation needed. Molly was immediately on her knees beside him and jumping into mother-mode, already ordering Arthur to bring in a bowl of water and a flannel.

"Aren't you going to use healing spells to make him better mum?" Ginny squeaked, her face considerably whiter than she had been all night. She looked as if she was about to throw up her breakfast and lunch.

"Yes, at first," Molly replied, inspecting Sirius's head for anymore lumps and bumps. Her hands were dripping with his blood. "But as Hermione will tell you, the muggle-way is much more thorough so it produces far better results, and when it comes to cleaning wounds, the more thorough the better."

Staring at Sirius's body, Hermione found her hands were shaking and tears were clawing fiercely at her eyes.

"Is that really Sirius?" she whispered to Ginny.

Ginny followed her gaze and nodded grimly. "Mop of hair, bad-ass stubble, leather jacket, ripped shirt, slacks and boots… I'd say so."

Hermione swallowed back the lump in her throat and smiled weakly, although it didn't reach her eyes. All she kept thinking was that she _knew_ this was how Sirius would react; knew it was the type of thing that he would do and evidently the type of thing he _did_. But, somehow she couldn't help but feel disappointed standing there, one hand on her slightly-bumped belly and the other over her mouth. Had she built up the hope that maybe, just _maybe_ he wouldn't have drowned his sorrows to such an amount that he got into a fight? Expecting him to return sober and straight-walking was highly unlikely, but she hadn't expected him to be in bloody tatters and knocked unconscious either. It was hard to believe he was the same man she had been arguing with not two hours before. He looked so dead… so beaten… it scared her. And she wasn't the only one.

Her eyes fell on Remus, who was looking shaken and quite ill.

"How much did he drink?" she asked, barely louder than a whisper. Her throat was dry and voice hoarse as she waited for the answer.

He met her eyes and sighed heavily, as if he blamed it all on himself. "I lost count," was his bleak reply.

Their eyes travelled to the lifeless Sirius again, and she watched with a biting lip as Molly drew her wand and pointed it at his nose, his lip, and then to the back of his head, attempting to fix him up the best she could whilst he remained motionless the whole time. His eyes were closed, chest still. Fear swelled inside her at the thought that he would never wake up… that she would never hear his deep voice or his infectious bark of laughter again.

Of course it was silly, of course she would, but there was always that little voice inside her thinking _'what if-?'_

"Hermione," Tonks soothing voice pulled her back to planet Earth. "Are you okay?"

Hermione snapped out of her trance and glanced at Tonks, who was looking at her with a concerned frown. "Yes I-I'm fine," she said, smiling reassuringly at her to confirm that she really was okay. "I'm just … I suppose I'm just annoyed at him…" _No surprise there. _"I'm sorry but… but I'm really not feeling at all well. I think I'm going to go back to the flat and have a lie down."

She looked back at Sirius over her shoulder.

"Send me an owl when he's better, and I'll pop round… providing _I'm_ feeling better," she added with a cheeky smile and made her way out the room, the grin dropping from her face as soon as she turned the corner.

She was out the door and apparating away before anyone could call her back and tell her otherwise, and when she landed in the oh-so familiar surroundings of her cosy bedroom, there wasn't a time she felt more relieved to be home. As if she was stripping to dive in the sea, she rid herself of all her clothes except for her bra and knickers and slid into bed, cherishing every second of her solitude buried in her toasty-warm covers.

"_How much did he have to drink?"_

"_I lost count..."_

A frozen Sunday night rolled into a chilly Monday morning, with the wet pavement freezing into ice and making the little town of Hogsmeade a nightmare for those late Christmas shoppers. Along the high street, people were often seen with their heads down and eyes glued to their feet in case they slipped over, and often when they did (which was a lot of the time), they would grab their shopping partner's arm to stop them falling and let out a rather sheepish laugh.

Fortunately for Hermione, she hadn't fallen on her arse yet. Although if she did, _her _shopping partner Luna wasn't going to be much help to keep upright and balanced. Her white blonde fairy friend had taken a liking to sliding across the ice in her scuffed up Converses and was wobbling more than a toddler in its first steps.

"Luna, stop!" she told her, half laughing half being serious. "I'm the pregnant one here; I'm the woman in desperate need! If I fall over the baby's going to wake up from its nice little nap."

Luna turned to look at her, her cheeks flushed with pink from the cold and a tremendous smile gracing her lips. "You're only at two months Hermione," she reminded her, "the baby's main priority is to grow arms and legs, not having '"nice little naps"'. Though I'm almost certain they would be very comfortable," she finished kindly.

"They would be," Hermione agreed, beaming as they held hands and waddled to the bookshop. They both loved reading; it was one of the reasons why she loved shopping with Luna so much, because it was the rare occasion where she didn't have to make a dreadful excuse to have a snoop around in the bookshop's aisles of literature heaven.

"Have you seen Sirius since he woke up?" Luna asked her absently as she traced the spines of new books with her finger.

Hermione looked up from the blurb she was reading and sighed. "No. I was going to see him when I got back today. I wrote him a 'Get Well Soon' card," she said laughing. "How is he?"

"Aright I think," she replied, smiling warmly at her. "Much better than yesterday. I always thought he looked rather dashing when his face was blood-free."

Hermione yawned and returned a book to the shelf. "Yes, well, when someone's personality is so awful, handsome looks and dashing smiles mean nothing."

Luna didn't seem the slightest bit surprised at her comment, since she had heard Hermione express her immense dislike for the arrogant, reckless pure-blood many, many times. Of course, Luna knew the real reason why they didn't get on, and she had already told her and the other girls what that was. Sexual tension could be a real bastard sometimes.

Hermione's irritable voice cut through her train of thought.

"I know what you're thinking Luna. Please don't run away with the idea of some romantic, erotic union. As much as it would make a good read-" she said with a smile, "I don't like him. You said that he got into that fight last night with that rugby-player guy because he was _listening in on his conversation…_" she shook her head, suddenly exasperated, and Luna got the impression that she had been bottling up her frustration at Sirius's irresponsible behaviour all night. "No other person of his age would do that, would they? It has to be _him_."

She returned her attention to the book in her hands, an updated version of _Hogwarts: A History._ Luna was secretly beaming inside. _Wait for it… wait for it… _Sure enough, a minute later, Hermione shoved the book back on the shelf with an angry huff and spun around. "Come on, let's go. I can't focus now."

"Not even on Hogwarts: A History? Goodness Sirius must have wound you up good and proper."

Hermione scowled and marched out of the shop, a lady on a mission; Luna shot an apologetic look to the shop owner as she returned a novel and hurried after her friend. Maybe she should have picked up an erotic, romance novel after all…

Sirius was standing outside of Grimmauld Place, his head resting against the cold wall as he sucked on his mid-morning cigarette. Remus was cooking a bacon sarnie in the kitchen, and they had left the back door open so they could carry on their conversation, though Remus had to speak loudly over the sizzling meat in the pan so Sirius could hear him.

"How do you like it?" he shouted, poking the bacon with a wooden spatula. "Just about cooked, crispy or burnt?"

"Not burnt but so crispy that you could call it burnt," Sirius replied, rubbing his tired eyes wearily when Remus shouted a 'WHAT?' in response. He couldn't be bothered to repeat such a long sentence.

"BURNT!" he snapped.

Remus nodded and left the bacon to sizzle while he fetched plates from the cupboard. He sliced open the buttered bread roll and quickly dropped the piping bacon inside it, swearing under his breath at his burnt fingers. "Here you go Pads," he said, handing him the plate. "One burnt bacon sarnie."

Sirius accepted the plate with a smirk. "Thanks mate, you're such a gentleman."

He took one last drag on his cigarette before dropping it to the floor and stamping out the butt. Then he entered the kitchen, raking a hand through his silky hair.

"You know, I was just thinking… I believe the time has come for me to learn how to cook." He sounded thoroughly proud of himself, as if he was challenging himself to do the impossible. "You're going to have to teach me though… I have a talent for charcoal toast."

He cracked a wry grin.

Remus snorted and raised his eyebrows. "I've been telling you to learn since we finished Hogwarts! Why are you so willing all of a sudden? It's unnerving."

Sirius took a monstrous bite into his roll and rolled his eyes as he chewed heartily. "Since yesterday Moony, keep up old boy. I'm going to be a dad!"

Remus almost choked on his bacon. "You've changed your tune!" he yelped, eyes wide in disbelief. "Yesterday you were saying how you couldn't do it… how you were going to leave London because she was going to keep it! And then - if you allow me to refresh your mind – you head butted a man and got knocked unconscious!"

Sirius's content expression fell slightly as he was reminded of the battered state he was in the night before. "Yeah well, I'm fine now," he shrugged sourly, "when I woke up this morning with that splitting headache, I managed to make it to the bathroom without being sick and on the way there my dear Great-Grandfather Phineas Nigellus spoke to me from his frame, saying how he would rather the Black family name die with me now, the last Black heir, than for me to father a baby with Hermione. And it made me think… She's a muggle-born isn't she? So our child would be a half blood!"

He looked awfully excited at the prospect, and Remus suspected that if he was in dog-form he would be wagging his tail. "This is it Remus! I can change and kill all my family's old prejudices! The long ancestry of fucked up pure-blood mania! I can break the chain!" his eyes gleamed for a second and he beamed. "I've _BROKEN_ the chain!"

He turned swiftly to do a victory dance but stopped abruptly when he bumped into a young woman with her arms crossed and cheeks tinged red with anger and hurt. His arms dropped to his sides limply, and the smile slipped from his face as quick as it came.

The tension in the room was palpable.

"Hermione…" he breathed, his voice shaky with nerves.

"Hello Sirius. It's nice to see you looking so… alive."

He shut his eyes briefly at her jab and swallowed thickly as he tried to gather his thoughts together. "Look, I was hoping we could talk about-"

"How you're all for a baby now that you've realised I'm a Mudblood and you can put it against your family? Yes I heard that part," she hissed, getting more furious each passing second. "Are you still looking for ways to enrage your mother even now?! Is this baby just like putting posters of half-naked muggle biker women in your bedroom?!"

"No!" Sirius growled, stepping hastily toward her. "Of course it's not like that. If you would just listen-"

"_No!" _she cried. "Why should I?! Yesterday I told you I was pregnant and you ran off, and when you came home you were virtually unrecognisable! I thought – I thought you wouldn't wake up Sirius!"

He hadn't intended on arguing with her again, though it was inevitable, and no one seemed to know why. Tears filled her eyes and Sirius blinked to stop them gathering in his own. She was crying, and he was the reason; he hated himself for both.

"Hermione, I'm sorry."

He glanced at Remus as if to say 'help me!', but his friend simply held his hands up in bewilderment. He turned back to Hermione, who was half-turned away from him, tearfully debating whether to leave or not.

"Don't go, look- I didn't know what to do… I wasn't expecting…- we used a contraceptive spell and when you told me I - I was –" he bowed his head in shame. "I was scared…"

Her eyes widened.

"_I _WAS SCARED!" she shouted, pointing a finger to her own chest. "It was alright for you, you could drink as much as you liked… drown your sorrows… forget this ever happened… but I couldn't could I?! I couldn't touch a drop!"

"I'm sorry 'Mione, I'm so, _so_ sorry."

He stepped closer to her and lunged for her hand, which he caught and held with his own, no matter how much she tried to push him away.

"What else do you want me to say? Please don't leave."

She scowled and turned her back on him, effectively blocking him out.

"I wrote you a fucking 'get well soon' card," she said disgustedly, seizing a letter from her jean pocket. "I suppose there was no need to write it now, you've already got what you always wanted. Revenge on your family…"

She struggled under his hold, eventually breaking away and throwing the envelope behind her carelessly.

"You don't even care do you? I knew you didn't care for me, but our baby as well?!" she shook her head and stormed from the kitchen. "You are the biggest, most heartless GIT Sirius Black! Leave me alone! Drink yourself dead again and see if I care!"

"HERMIONE!"

He watched, terrified, as she pulled open the front door and disappeared the other side. The events had turned dramatically, making this - by a long mile - their worst argument yet, and the one that held the most consequence, if it were to end like this.

"HERMIONE, COME BACK!" he roared, leaving an astonished Remus alone and gasping as he dashed after her.

He fell through the door desperately and stared around for her. She was way ahead of him, already half way up the road and turning round the corner that led to the posh restaurants of Mayfair. In his blind panic, he almost tripped down the stone steps of his house as he sprinted after her, his eyes transfixed on her moving figure as she fled from him. The woman was proving to be quite the runner.

_Bitch._

At the red telephone box on the corner, she disappeared out of sight and Sirius drove his legs faster to get to her quicker, becoming increasingly aware of how out of breath he was getting. He should have listened to Hermione all of those times when she criticised his smoking, for it was now that he wished he'd have taken her advice the most.

"HERMIONE! WAIT!" he bellowed.

He reached the corner, panting hard as he glanced up and down the narrow street. Mayfair was never ridiculously busy – it was no Oxford Street, but there was always a fair few posh totties window-shopping with their butler. It was the kind of place Mayfair was, rich people living with more money than they knew what to do with. It was the reason his family lived there. Not to mention a place that you could easily lose track of people.

He spotted her jogging across the street, darting between couples and groups and looking over her shoulder in his direction as she did so to see if he had followed. When she saw that he had, she wiped her brow and continued running, determined to lose his trail on her one way or another.

"Who's being immature now?" he growled under his breath, his eyes trained on nothing but her, silently rising to the challenge.

Hermione silently cursed herself as she slowed down and checked behind her once again. People probably thought she was some kind of paranoid wreck, which, in a way, was entirely true. It was annoying how things only seemed to be a bad idea when you were half way through doing them; that statement never deemed more truer than now, pregnant and running through Mayfair in an attempt to escape Sirius, the father of her baby and the man she had just pissed off tremendously.

"HERMIONE!"

She groaned and started moving again but changed her mind last minute when an idea struck her which made her switch direction and dart into the nearest shop. A bakery. The door shut behind her with a clang and she ran straight into an elderly grey-haired man, knocking him to the floor with the severe force. It was one of those accidents that was so rotten that it was nearly laughable.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" she burst out, immediately bending over to help him up. "I wasn't looking and I'm in a bit of a hurry."

She peered over her shoulder once more and relaxed in relief when Sirius was nowhere to be seen. Clearly, entering the shop had been a wise decision on her part.

"It's quite alright dear," the man said, tenderly brushing himself off and re-adjusting his flat cap. "Although I cannot say the same for my Bake well tart." He held up the now squished and crumbled cake in his hand and smiled good-naturedly. "I'm Jeffrey."

"Hello, I'm Hermione," she said, grinning sheepishly back.

He rolled on the balls of his feet. "What's a pretty woman like yourself doing down here alone?"

He winked at her, and Hermione was horrified. Though he was only playing around, she still felt a mortified (and a little amused) at the idea that a man in his knocking his nineties was hitting on her. She could tell that he was a bit of a player in his day.

She hesitated slightly. "Er – I -I was trying to get away from a crazy … man."

He quirked his eyebrow in interest, but she simply cleared her throat and changed the conversation.

"I'm awfully sorry about your tart Jeffrey, was it your lunch? Here, let me buy you a new one."

He politely refused and said she didn't have to, but being as stubborn as she was she insisted; eventually he gave in and she was fishing in her bag for her purse. She always carried muggle money about with her. Pulling out three pounds, she placed the coins on the counter and smiled to the shopkeeper.

"Two Bake-well tarts please."

"Certainly madam," the man replied, but was cut off abruptly.

"Make that three."

The deep voice sent shivers down her spine. She could feel his hot breath against her neck, his hand pressed so tightly on her hip it hurt, and the way he trapped her against the counter, no doubt smirking at his victory.

"Sorry to interrupt," he said to Jeffrey, "Mind if I take this delightful lady off your hands? She can be mad at the best of times, and she's pregnant now. The first of many, right love?"

Hermione ignored him.

He glanced back at Jeffrey, chortling, "Apparently not! Anyway, it was nice to meet you mate."

One hand still possessively around Hermione's waist, he outstretched his other to the dumb-founded old man who seemed to be frozen with his mouth hanging open. Sirius, beaming ear to ear as if he had just performed one of the biggest acts of kindness, didn't seem to be aware of this.

Jeffrey remained silent – apparently speechless, whilst Sirius accepted the three cakes from the shopkeeper and held one out for him to take. It wasn't till a solid two minutes later, when Hermione was fed up of the awkward eye contact with the seventy year old shopkeeper, and Sirius's arm was beginning to falter, did Jeffrey raise a shaky hand and take his tart.

"Th-thank you," he wheezed, pocketing the bun and staring back up at the two of them. "Er - good luck with the baby."

It appeared that he understood they would need all the luck in the world. With a last watery smile to Hermione, he tipped his flat cap and hobbled out of the shop as fast as his legs could carry him.

Hermione grit her teeth in annoyance as she felt Sirius chuckle behind her.

She spun around to face him, trapped in his arms. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Me?" He stiffened with anger and leant close to her; she shivered as his mouth dipped to her ear. "I could ask you the very same," he whispered. "Before you made your great escape attempt didn't you tell me that you wouldn't care if I died?"

He nodded curtly at her silence and guided her towards a table at the back of the bakery.

"I can walk Sirius," she hissed, trying and failing to shove his hands away from her waist.

"I'm just checking you don't run off again and flatten another poor old man," he said, and gently pushed her into the seat. "Right, you're going to sit there and eat your Bake-well tart-" he placed the cake in front of her. "While you listen to me. I think we need to have a chat about how much you jumped to conclusions back in the house and got everything wrong." He sat in the chair opposite, ran two hands through his shaggy locks and grinned in a very school-master sort of way. "Is there anything you'd like to say before I start?"

Hermione frowned at him and crossed her arms, feigning uninterested. "Apart from being an idiot …?" Sirius sighed heavily, and she smiled sweetly at him. "Then no. I think that's everything."

"I'm going to blame that on the pregnancy," he said, taking a deep breath. "Just give me five minutes to let me explain how I feel… then you can say whatever you want about me, alright?" he looked at her, gently pleading. "Five minutes. Please."

He barely even deserved that, but he'd mastered the puppy dog eyes and as it was she was feeling a tinge of guilt for wishing him dead. Despite everything, all their blinding rows, the thrown china, and slammed doors that followed, she wanted him around. Life was better for the family when he was there, whether it be bloody and battered or not, and the same would ring true for their baby.

So she met his stormy eyes of sincerity and nodded, waiting for him to speak.

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><p><em><strong>AN: This chapter was approximately 9 pages in microsoft word font size 12, which I thought was pretty bloody impressive. Sirius and Hermione's arguing... it's one of my most favourite things to write. A heated, anger-flowing argument between those two sends me into a frenzy. I LOVE IT. As usual, thank you muchly for the reviews and keep the questions coming! I haven't been replying as quick as I would've like recently because of exams and stuff, but I'll never stray for too long :)**_

**_By the way, I SCREAMED THE HOUSE DOWN WHEN MY FANTASY LOVER GARY OLDMAN WAS NOMINATED FOR AN OSCAR!_**


	6. Australia Threats and Perky Breasts

Chapter Six: _**Australia Threats & Perky Breasts**_

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><p>He didn't start straight away. He kept meeting her eyes and looking away again, as if he was spurring himself up to talk to her and then backing out halfway through. He had an uncharacteristic shake in his hand as it ran through his dark locks, and his throat pulsed every few seconds in hasty swallows. Hermione watched him, equally as anxious, as he shrugged his leather jacket off, and then back on again and then back off…<p>

She bit down on the inside of her lip and drove herself to start talking about something – _anything_ – that would put an end to this slow, painful torture.

"I'm going to catch the next flight to Australia and raise this baby without you if you don't start talking. My parents are there, so I wouldn't be alone… _in fact_ it'd be very cosy. I'm going to go and check the flight prices now-"

She made to move.

"No!" he rose from his chair to show his insistence and snatched her hand from the table to hold tightly in his. "You're not leaving!"

Hermione made no sign of having heard him and continued to remove herself from the bakery and calling out to the shopkeeper to ask what the temperature was in Sydney.

"Or Canberra. I don't mind," she added conversationally.

She strode purposefully to the counter and he stared after her, his mouth and his brain about to burst open with panic. He was behind her in a second; she could feel his hot, harsh breath tickle her ears, feel his large hands curl around her hips.

He watched her listen to the shopkeeper talking about the temperature; how her chocolate eyes were dancing with amusement and her lips pursed in triumphant victory. She had pulled the 'Australia' card to get him back for his recklessness at the pub, and he had fallen for it.

"Thirty eight degrees?" she yelped, staring wide-eyed at the shopkeeper before looking incredulously to Sirius. He glared with annoyance as her mouth split into a dazzling smile, "hear that Sirius? Oh, how can I say no to that? It's snowing here! Goodness, I'd better call mum and tell her I'll be over in time for Christmas. I'll start shopping for some new bikinis today-"

She was shaking with silent laughter now, and the shopkeeper was wondering what on earth he had said.

"It's not you," Sirius said to the shopkeeper, though he wasn't looking at him; his hands tightened on her hips and his voice dipped to a growl. "It's me."

She was yanked out of the door in one swift movement, and when she blinked there were snowflakes falling. Then there was Sirius, invading her senses, looking pale and shaken.

"Leaving for Australia?! Raising our baby alone? _Australia?!_ For the love of Merlin Hermione do you want me to have a heart attack? Do you want me to drop dead?"

What was left of her smile faded, "I wanted you to talk to me! I wanted to hear what you had to say, not watch you torturing yourself! How do you think that made me feel?"

"Well I wouldn't know, because you don't talk to me! Not in the way you talk to everyone else…You push me away all the time, every day-!"

"That's because, - would you believe it - we _argue!_"

"We wouldn't if you'd just listen to me!" he yelled, then softer, quieter, a murmured plea… "Hermione, listen to me."

There were snowflakes in his hair, and she was pretty sure he was brushing them out of her own. He must have walked them to the wall, for they were up against it. It was cold on her back; so cold that when he pulled her gently into the warmth of his chest she obliged with closed eyes.

It was then; through soft, whispered words in her ear that he had told her what was on his mind.

"I want this baby, Hermione; I want to give all the love my parents failed to give me. And if you'll let me, I want to be there for you too… every day, even if you don't want me. Because I do care, you know. Whatever pretence I put on… I'll always care."

He smoothed her hair back and brushed a thumb across her cheek, and she felt herself melting in his arms just like the fluffy snow beneath their feet. Here he was with his heart pinned on his sleeve, whilst the raging hormones of pregnancy had turned her into a right bitch.

She fluttered her eyes open to meet his, and the sobs of apology started pouring out. Some of it was difficult to understand, but he still held her and he still listened. "…I don't know why I ran away from you, I was scared for you after the pub and I didn't want you to see how much… I'm so sorry… I'm just scared, it's my fault, mine… I'm sorry…"

"Hermione stop…" he cupped her cheeks, his silver eyes locked on hers in a determination to make her listen. "_I_ was the one who punched that man; _I_ was the one that got my arse beaten because of it. How could it be your fault when you weren't even there?" There was a hint of laughter in his voice, "He got off lightly with me, but if you were you'd have all but killed the poor bloke. According to Harry, you nearly broke Malfoy's nose when you punched him in third year."

Her mouth twitched into a smile, then a grin that grew until she was laughing at the memory.

"I was highly impressed and-" he softly kissed her temple, "_very_ proud."

His lips lingered there, and she found herself grinning sheepishly and glowing all over. She refrained from giggling though; Lavender and Parvarti were masters of it in their Hogwarts years and she'd despised it ever since. Somehow she always knew that Sirius had a knack of melting butter with one look, and right now Hermione was the butter.

"So… will you let me?" he murmured.

He looked more vulnerable than ever, like a lost puppy, and Hermione felt awful for leaving him hanging for so long, awful for how she suddenly understood why he had said those things about breaking the chain of his family. _He wanted to be different from them, to stop all blood prejudice. _She smiled a watering smile and nodded, and he let out a long sigh of relief.

"But don't let me down," she warned him quietly, the vulnerability all on her now.

He shook his head so vigorously and squeezed the hand of hers he was holding. "I won't, love."

"And you have to buy me whatever food I'm craving," she said, and he smiled broadly and waited for the rest of her long list of 'you have to's'.

"And you have to carry my bags, and give me foot massages," she reminded him, as he wrapped an arm around her waist and guided her to walk. "Oh! And you have to buy me books!" she exclaimed excitedly, as if she had never thought of that before, and the idea had just popped into her head.

He glanced sideways at her ecstatic expression. "Why do I have to do that?"

"Because it'll make me happy, and you want me happy don't you?" she replied.

He raked a hand through his hair as if deep in thought. "If I say no will you do a Malfoy on me?"

She abruptly stopped walking and narrowed her eyes as he chuckled lowly. He seemed to sense her lack of amusement a minute later and tugged playfully on her hand to get her to resume walking again. "Of course I want you happy, love. How about we go to the book shop now? Waterstones is over the road."

Immediately she started walking again, and, watching her, he saw she was smiling.

The following day, Hermione slept in till twelve o'clock and pulled the 'I'm pregnant' excuse so Ginny would go and make her a cup of tea. This excuse proved to be difficult to out-challenge for Ginny, and thus ended up flouncing into the kitchen to put the kettle on as Hermione waited in the snuggly confines of her duvet.

After slurping down the mug, wolfing down two slices of jam on toast (which Ginny had also made her) and having general chit-chatter; Hermione was pulling up her jeans, just about fitting into a pretty blouse, and slipping into her duffle coat for the check-up at St. Mungos. Tonks had booked it the night before via owl; Hermione thought it was too early for a scan at two months, but the metamorphmagus had been insistent that it wasn't, and then proudly showed her the nine moving photograph scans of Teddy, taken each month, up till his birth.

Hermione had to swallow back a line of argument and accept that she was going to have to go to the scan, regardless of the fact that she worked at the hospital as a healer. She hadn't even thought so far ahead to tell her boss that she was expecting either, so she was setting herself up for trouble.

Ginny's voice, coming from behind a Witch Weekly magazine, effectively cut off her train of thought. "Are you meeting Sirius before-hand or are you meeting him at the hospital?"

Hermione swivelled around so fast she dropped her house keys on the floor. She didn't bother picking them up. "What? Is he coming?"

Ginny dropped the magazine and slowed down the chewing of her cereal. "_Isn't_ he coming?"

"No."

Ginny arched an eyebrow in inquiry.

"I didn't… I forgot to tell him."

Ginny groaned and set down her cereal bowl, ready to talk some business into her flat-mate. "Well Floo him now! He needs to go with you!"

"Why?"

"This is your first scan! It's a big thing! I'm sure he would love to go-"

"I'm sure he wouldn't! He's only just decided that he wanted to be a part of our child's life; I don't want him to feel like he has to come to this scan as well. It'd scare him!"

"I'm sure those twelve years in Azkaban shook him up a bit worse!" she cooed melodramatically. "You have to tell him. It's only going to cause more arguments-"

"Valid point there Ginny," said a deep voice from behind them. They both jumped out of sheer shock, and when they saw who it was, Ginny chortled and Hermione's face fell.

Sirius was leaning against the wall next to the fireplace. His hair was mussed and sleep tousled, and he was wearing his leather jacket over a charcoal sweater that matched his eyes. He smiled at Ginny and sent a teasing, winking hello to Hermione, only to receive a frown in return.

"Will you stop doing that one liner thing?" she shot at him irritably. "You did it yesterday at the baker's as well. Say hello like a normal person."

"Ah, well then it's a good thing I'm not a normal person then isn't it?" he said breezily, leaning closer to the mantelpiece to examine some photographs.

He stopped dead when a certain framed photograph caught his eye. It was taken in France, when she and Ginny were at the beach; they were laughing hysterically with their hair blowing out behind them, thinking they were catwalk models. She was wearing a pearly white bikini, and her wet skin was beautifully sun kissed.

It was the photograph that had apparently made Fred and George fall in love with her, and now, seeing Sirius stare at it, she'd wished she'd taken it down. _'Any man but him', _she cursed silently,_ 'any man!'…_

Sirius straightened up and turned to look at her; he wasn't smirking as she suspected, but was straight-faced, unreadable. However his eyes were just as she had predicted: piercing and dark.

"You look … like you had a good time."

She bowed her head to the floor and nodded. "We did."

"It was amazing," Ginny gushed, "We're definitely going back in Easter aren't we?"

"Well, it depends on the way of travel. I'll be six months pregnant by then and I can't very well apparate can I?" she glanced at Sirius, who was already looking at her, and away again. "Anyway, the scan…"

He pushed off the wall and started towards her.

"I'm coming with you. Are you ready?"

He scooped up her keys from the floor and threw them in the air, flashing a mischievous grin at her when he caught them. And there he was again, the old charming Sirius, in all his sinful good looks and glory.

Hermione sent Ginny a miserable look and followed him out the hallway, her arms crossed firmly over her chest to stop herself from doing anything untoward… like hitting him.

"We're going on my motorbike. Is that alright?"

He knew it wasn't; there was no point in even asking the question, really. If she hated flying on a broomstick, and screamed the whole way when they rescued him on Buckbeak, she was going to hate his motorbike no matter how safe he claimed it was. So he pretended he couldn't see her deathly scowls by curiously observing a painting on the wall.

_The mangy mutt was really asking for it._

She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply; it took all the strength and patience she had to be civil to him, particularly on a subject of a bleeding motorbike. "My mother always says don't knock something until you've tried it…"

"Your mother sounds very wise."

"She isn't."

He laughed and held out his hand for her to take, explaining that it was icy outside. After much convincing, she sighed an exasperated _'fine!_' and grudgingly allowed him to take her hand and intertwine their fingers.

He opened the door and gazed out at the busy street of Hogsmeade, where dozens of witches and wizards were streaming from shop to shop for their Christmas shopping. A gust of wind hit them, and Hermione's teeth chattered.

"Your breasts seem particularly perky today," he told her, flicking his eyes to her said pair and biting his lip to hold back a smirk. She remembered that she hadn't a bra on, and quickly glanced down at them and felt her cheeks blush when she saw the effects of nippy English weather.

They definitely seemed perkier.

"Shut up Sirius," she murmured, gritting her teeth and none too gently pulling him along the High Street to his shiny black motorbike waiting for them outside the Quality Quidditch store. "You know, I wouldn't have a problem if I was in Australia. Thirty eight degrees remember? Maybe I could still go…" she wandered aloud, trying and failing to hide her laughter when he snapped his head to her.

"Don't go there," he warned her in a low voice. "We've already had that conversation."

They reached his motorcycle, and without warning he picked her up and ungraciously dropped her on the seat. She squeaked and opened her mouth to say something smart when she did a double take. _Was he looking at…? No, he couldn't have been. _Glancing up again, she caught him: he was looking down, mouth open, head cocked to the side and gazing in unabashed admiration at her breasts.

With a gasp, she smacked him. "What is wrong with you men? Fred and George are exactly the same! I'm up here!"

He tore his eyes away, mumbling his apologies, and sat on the seat in front of her where he started up the engine with a flick of his wand. It roared to life. She sat rigid, blushing and muttering under her breath that she was going to drive his motorbike and run him over one day.

He merely laughed, ran a hand down her leg and said the bike only answered to his commands.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: I know this is ridiculously short, but it will be longer next time. I solemnly swear that. As ever, your comments are wonderful and I am massively thrilled you are enjoying the story of these two characters, as cute and frustrating as they may be! -hollister9**_


	7. Things get Sirius at St Mungos

Chap 7: _**Things get Sirius at St. Mungos**_

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><p>At the entrance to St Mungos, Sirius cut the engine and immediately he felt Hermione's weight shift as she sprung off. That journey on the back of Sirius's motorbike – though short - had to have been one of the worst experiences of her life. She hated heights and flying, and Sirius knew that, and <em>she knew<em> Sirius knew that, yet still he soared higher into the air, practically bouncing on clouds and barking with laughter through the skies. He was completely oblivious to how much she was trembling, how her eyes were squeezed shut until they reached the ground.

She had run out of adjectives to describe him now.

The man was too hard to deal with, too annoying, too arrogant, too childish, too much everything; evidently her dislike showed in her body language when she silently turned away from the bike and stalked through the glass doors without waiting for him. He looked back at her, watching as she crossed her arms and ran two frustrated hands through her lion's mane that she called her hair. It was wildly windswept around her head and her cheeks flushed pink with the cold, and for a moment he wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her.

As he went to, she turned and stalked towards the entrance, muttering furiously under her breath. It was then that he realised he was in deep shit, and it took him another minute to gather himself and follow her inside.

The reception area was all white and brimming with a sickly aroma of potions, medicines and chemicals. Scanning the room and pushing past queues of waiting witches and wizards, he finally spotted her at the front desk, speaking to the curvy black-haired receptionist. He came up behind her and did the only gentlemanly thing he could think of to make up for any upset caused; he shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"You look cold," he murmured, rubbing her arms and shoulders warm, "is that better?"

"It's too late now." She waited until the receptionist had picked up a Muggle telephone before she elaborated. "The damage has already been done on your motorbike."

"Hermione..." he sunk his head down to her ear, his voice low in reminder, "I _told you_ we were flying."

"And yet you know I hate it, I always have, why would you still-?"

The female receptionist put down the phone, and Hermione pursed her lips and fell into an abrupt silence once more. Sirius stared at her, completely perplexed, and waited for her to resume; when she became suddenly engrossed in a pamphlet, _'Dr Ubbly's Magical Remedies for Children', _he couldn't help the hissed profanity slip from his lips any more than he could help marvel at her. How could she switch her attention like that? How could she just turn a conversation on and off?

"Hermione?" He rested his hand on her forearm, his tattooed fingers curling around her wrist, and gently shook her. "What were you saying?"

She continued reading the pamphlet, and he noticed her eyebrows had risen slightly in intrigue, as they often did when she was reading something he would label as 'swotty'. Taking matters into his own hands and moving the ball firmly back into _his_ court, he plucked the pamphlet from her fingers and shoved it into his pocket with a growl. "I'm waiting, sweetheart."

She merely glanced at him with a cocked eyebrow and started drumming her fingers on the desk instead. It was then that he frustratingly started to question his own sanity as to whether she actually ever spoke in the first place. He didn't ponder the thought long enough to decide, regardless; he was moving his hand atop of hers and flattening it against the table before she could blink. The drumming stopped, and the rough contact made her eyes jump to his.

"I'll ask you one more time."

His grip on her hand tightened, and her lips, pinky red from being bitten, quirked into a little smile. For no reason at all, Sirius felt one grow on his own. They both opened their mouths to say something, and they both were beaten to it.

"So sorry about that," the receptionist rushed, finally putting down her paperwork and beaming. "Stanley called from level four."

Hermione and Sirius turned to look at her, Sirius a lot slower.

"Anyway," the black haired woman set down her quill and gushed at Hermione, "we've _missed you_ hun! You need to tell me all about Australia! And what were you saying before the phone rang? About the-? You aren't showing, are you? You need to tell me who's...?"

Hermione propped her elbows on the desk and nodded hastily, "Later Jessica, later." She cast a quick glance to Sirius, who was looking from one woman to the other with a puzzled frown, as if trying to work out when it was they had become so well acquainted. "We're colleagues," she explained, with a warm roll of her eyes. "Jessica is the receptionist, I'm a..." she cleared her throat and waved her hand, "well, you know already."

_He'd undressed her from her uniform._

"Jess, have you met Sirius Black?" She gestured casually to the man beside her who was running a hand through his silky locks and gave her friend a deliberate cheeky biting lip as she said it, because she knew very well that they _hadn't_ met.

The amount of lunch breaks they had sat together gossiping, sipping coffee and flicking through the latest _Witch Weekly_ was astounding. It was widely known amongst the co-workers at St. Mungos that Jessica's longing fantasy was Sirius Black. It certainly wasn't an uncommon fantasy for women – quite the contrary – but if Hermione had to endure her friend gushing over pictures of Sirius with his shirt half undone doing his irritating wink one more time, she was going to hex something… preferably him.

Jessica gave a little squeak and bolted up right in her swivel chair so fast it was like she'd been caught with a vibrator under the desk. She pursed her red lips together and stared at him, utterly transfixed. Hermione grinned at her flustered state and then turned and pulled Sirius by the arm to introduce himself.

"Sirius, this is Jessica." She motioned to her heavily made-up friend gawping at him like a fish out of water. "Jessica this is - well, you know who he is," she admonished quickly and gave an amused, pointed look to her friend. "I told you the pictures were deceiving."

Jessica spluttered in a half-laugh and half-gasp and shook her head in awe and complete disagreement. "No! He's… Sirius you're – you're beautiful," she said with a blush and the cliché hair-twizzling-finger.

Sirius was too preoccupied glaring at Hermione to notice, and it was only when her honey eyes met his back that he moved.

"Now _there's_ a polite woman," he said loudly, smiling very obviously at Hermione. "You don't come across many these days, especially those that actually reply to what you're saying and don't give you the silent treatment." Within seconds he'd turned the swagger on and Hermione watched with narrowed eyes as he strolled forward, clasped Jessica's hand in his and kissed the back of it like a dramatic Prince Charming. "It's a pleasure to meet you Jess. You're beautiful too, love."

Jessica was beside herself with giddiness, and when he gifted her with the signature wink that all women dreamed was for them, she was positively _reeling_. Hermione folded her arms and rose her chin indifferently.

"I'm starting to think you have a flinch you wink so much," she observed coldly, sneering when he clenched his jaw. It was childish, but she couldn't help but feel a rush of pride for doing it all the same. Then she turned her back on him. "Jess?"

Sirius growled when her voice changed enthusiastic and friendly again, a damn sight different to how she spoke to him - when she did speak to him that is.

"I'm going to go up to level four to speak to Stanley. Wish me luck!"

She pushed away from the desk, and though she had been able to ignore most of his attempts at conversation, she couldn't ignore how his hand swiped through the air, caught hers and pulled her back to him. It was possessive, rough and angry, and she only realised how much when he spun her around and her body slammed into his firm chest.

"Where are you going?"

His face was inches from her own; she tried to pull away from his grasp but his eyes flashed menacingly and held her tighter.

"I told you: to speak to Stanley!" she stood on her tiptoes and dropped her voice to a husky whisper. "Why don't you stay here and get friendly with Jess?" she leant tantalisingly close to his ear. "Seeing as she is so beautiful."

His arms loosened around her as he stared, temporarily knocked off guard. By the time he came to again, she was already hurrying through the waiting room, weaving through the crowd of feverish witches and wizards, making a dash for the lift when she saw its doors closing. Sirius caught a glimpse of her blurry figure for a split second, and then the lift doors cluttered shut and she disappeared.

He swore under his breath and spun around to the desk, his brow crinkling in frustration. "Who the fuck is this Stanley?"

"Our boss, we call him 'Healer Herbert' around the workplace," Jess explained, shooting him a naughty look. "Mid thirties, lovely guy and he's got it bad for Hermione. The amount of times I've caught him checking out her arse!" she closed her eyes to emphasise her point. "Anyway, she's gone to find him because she's got a scan in ten minutes… she's pregnant-" she clarified, and seeing his confused expression nodded in disbelief. "I know! I've only just found out, she told me just before you came in… anyway, she has to tell Stanley the news before he sees her otherwise things could get a bit... you know," she said it as if he did, though he didn't have a bloody clue what she meant. "Being his favourite healer, he keeps asking her out to dinner, every month for the past two years; honestly, she's going to have to accept him one day, she can't always tell him she's hanging out with Harry Potter… Poor Stanley must be heartbroken! He's going to be devastated when he finds out she's pregnant, and even more devastated when she goes on maternity leave."

"Oh," was the best answer Sirius could think of. He looked back over his shoulder, knowing she wasn't there but doing it anyway. "I knew I should have gone with her. It sounds like the bloke needs a restraining order against her."

She giggled girlishly. "Oh, probably." She leant her chin on her hand and gave him an approving once over with her eyes, taking particular interest to the tattoos peeking out of his charcoal grey shirt. "So… where's your Godson?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows in surprise at the swift change of topic but answered straight away. He was always happy to talk about the boy who was the closest thing he had to a son, and he found himself beaming with pride whenever he did. "He's working at the Ministry. He's training to be an Auror," Sirius said, smiling at her impressed expression.

"Wow that's fantastic! He must be working hard; an Auror's working hours are so hectic! I bet he's annoyed that he's missing Hermione's first scan though."

Sirius shrugged indifferently. "Not really, he'll get to see the photograph." He smiled slightly at the thought: his baby, _seeing_ his baby. "I can't wait."

Jess nodded. "It is exciting. So is it just you with her or her ginger friend too? They're flatmates aren't they?"

"Yes, they live along Hogsmeade High Street," he replied, "And it's just me with Hermione."

The words were a stabbing reminder that he had lost her and was going to have to find her all by himself... somehow.

"Oh right," she smiled and cocked her head thoughtfully. "You know, I always knew Harry Potter would settle down young. They've been best friends for years haven't they? How long have they been together?"

"Erm…" he exhaled as he tried to think back. "I'm not sure. Quite a while. I think it was around fourth year? Or fifth. Too long ago to remember."

"Oh yes, it was around the time of the Triwizard Tournament! I remember the articles in the Daily Prophet! Apparently, she was playing two guys, who both happened to be competing in the Tournament: Harry Potter and Viktor Krum! It was _such_ a scandal." she shook her head as she reminisced. "Sweet though, two best friends and childhood sweethearts settling down…"

"Yeah, Harry proposed in..." he scratched his stubble. "Late October, I think it was. Well you'll probably know, it was all over the Prophet. Anything to do with my Godson is." He glanced behind him again and scanned the sick patients in the waiting room for a woman with chocolate wavy hair and wearing his leather jacket. He couldn't spot her anywhere.

"She'll be back in a minute," she told him. "But wait – I didn't see it in any of the newspapers! She's - they're _engaged?_ Well, she kept that one quiet! All those coffee's and hours of gossiping and she didn't mention it once!"

"Oh you know her then?" Sirius asked, drumming his fingers on the desk impatiently. "Ever been to one of her Quidditch games? She's seeker for the Holyhead Harpies."

Jessica frowned at him before letting out a shrill of high pitched laughter which probably could have been heard from four floors up. Sirius turned slowly to look at her, his eyebrows furrowed in bewilderment; either he must have seriously missed a large chunk of the conversation or she was completely crackers, because he had a biting sense of humour and he didn't know what on Earth was funny enough to cause _that_ kind of eruption.

"Oh Sirius! You're h-hilarious!" she gasped, and clutched her stomach as another peal of laughter shook the room. She might as well have been in labour with all the noise she made.

He continued to stare at her as if she had grown three heads, and after catching his eye another four times and desperately hoping that he would laugh along with her, she sobered up, finally understanding that his last question _wasn't_ meant to be a joke.

"I've worked with Hermione for two years Sirius, of course I know her!" she exclaimed. "Though I didn't know she liked Quidditch, let alone played for the Holyhead Harpies. And she only told me she was pregnant a few minutes ago too! I'm assuming the baby is Harry Potter's, as you've just said she was engaged to him. Well fuck," she shook her head, "An awful has happened since she took time off work to go to Australia, I'll tell you that."

Her eyes bulged almost comically, and Sirius got the feeling that they might burst and pop out of her sockets if she was told the truth.

But he cleared her throat and told her anyway.

"I wasn't talking about Hermione," he said, feeling decidedly awkward. "I was talking about Ginny Weasley. The ginger one?" when realisation dawned on her face, Sirius nodded and offered an apologetic smile. "It's _Ginny _who's engaged to my Godson, and it's _Ginny_ who he'll be marrying next summer. Not Hermione."

She stayed quiet for a few moments, and Sirius could tell she was thinking it all over. Watching her with the upmost amusement, he understood why she was working as the receptionist at the welcome desk instead of being a healer and helping patients. She was the female version of Neville Longbottom.

She bit the end of her quill as if trying to come up with an appropriate summary. "So…" she glanced at him in confusion and then clapped her hand over her mouth, and Sirius guessed she had worked it out. Finally. "Oh my – oh my god!"

"I know," he beamed. "I'm going to be a d-"

"Harry Potter _cheated_ on his _fiancé_ with_ Hermione_ and now she's _pregnant_?"

He gaped at her for a second before groaning loudly. "_No!_"

"Then who's the father of her baby?"

Sirius fought himself not to roll his eyes and instead took a deep breath, crossed his arms over his chest and set her with a calm look, rather like a teacher waiting for a class to answer their question. For him, this was patience at its finest. It really was.

"Why do you think I'm here?"

She bit her lip in thought, causing her red lipstick to stain her teeth. He couldn't make it any less obvious without telling her the answer himself. He thought that saying that, she would understand easily, but clearly it wasn't easy enough.

With long spider-like fingers she reached for her coffee mug and took a long contemplating sip. "I would say it's yours," she began with a swallow, "but Hermione wouldn't sleep with you." She said it firmly, as if the very thought was out of the question.

Sirius knew she didn't mean it in a horrible way, but he still took offense to it.

"You seem very sure of yourself," he remarked. "Go on then, humour me. Why wouldn't she sleep with me? I'm listening."

He intertwined his fingers on the desk and gave her his full attention. It seemed that everyone was under the illusion that Hermione was still the innocent virgin who went skiing in France with her parents, knit socks and tea-cosies for house elves by night and studied in the library hidden behind a stack of books, when she _wasn't._ Those days had died with Voldemort. She had ditched the ski boots for a sexy white bikini on a drunken holiday with Ginny, not picked up a sewing needle in over three years and Sirius guessed that she only hid behind her books because she was reading dirty romance novels about men with big cocks.

She was the brightest witch of her age because she had fooled them _all._

Jess shrugged her shoulders. "You just aren't her type, she's told me in the past when we've discussed it. You're probably every other woman's, but not hers."

"Well that's odd, seeing as she's carrying my child," Sirius lightly commented.

There was a hint of genuine inquiry in his voice, but it was lost amongst the dripping sarcasm.

Jess's eyes, like so many other times, bulged to the point where she looked ready to explode and Hermione chose that moment, of all moments, to stride back over to them with a definite spring in her step. "You two look like you're having fun," she observed.

Hearing her voice Sirius immediately left the desk and started towards her. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Are _you_ alright?" The same smile was playing on her lips as before, and this time it grew into a knowing smirk; he had a faint idea what it was about. "Why don't you ask _beautiful_ Jess out Sirius?" his eyes darkened and he shook his head warningly as if to say_ 'don't go there'_. "But don't arrange it on Christmas Eve, and don't choose the Bluebell restaurant in Covent Garden at seven o'clock," she added quickly.

She pulled out a bunch of red roses from behind her back and inspected them with a shy smile. Jess gasped. "Oh my god! Stanley asked you out _again? _And you _accepted?_"

"Well, I didn't have much of a choice," she said, nibbling her lip uncertainly. "After I told him I was pregnant, he said I _had_ to allow him to take me on a date."

"Why would he say that?" Jess asked, mirroring Sirius's confused expression.

"Why has he asked you out on a date?" Sirius demanded.

His hand dropped to clasp her arm, and she pushed him off with a scowl.

"He asked because he feels awful for me." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and elaborated uncomfortably, quietly addressing Jess. "Apparently, he doesn't like Sirius..."

Sirius's ears pricked up at the mention of his name and he shot a piercing glare at her. "What? Did you say something to him then?"

His voice was a harsh bark and Hermione threw him a scandalous, offended look. "_No!_ Why on Earth would I?"

"I don't know Hermione, you tell me! Why else would he not like me? Don't you think it's strange that a man I've never met before doesn't like me after talking to you?"

The pretty roses were dropped to the floor in shock and hurt and neither of them noticed, neither cared, and neither even heard a thing. They were glaring at each other viciously, heatedly, like two tigers about to pounce. "You think I've been bad mouthing you? Is that what you're saying?"

He slammed his hand against the desk. "That's exactly what I'm saying! I bet you skipped off to him and mouthed off about me the whole time, like you always do!" he snarled. "You want nothing more-!"

"Excuse me?" Her mouth dropped open. "That is utter rubbish! When have I _ever_-_?_"

"He's in love with you so you pulled the sympathy vote- 'I was seduced by the womaniser Sirius Black!' and then he pitied you and asked you out for dinner!"

She shook her head in stricken disbelief. "I refuse to listen to this - this absolute crap-!"

She turned to leave but he was quicker; he grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him, holding her close, breathing hard.

"I'll bet on Merlin's bullocks that you didn't tell him that we were both sober that night, that you knew what you were doing, that you wanted it just as much as I wanted it. Did you tell him, Hermione, how you cried my name into my ear? How you were naked and whispering over and over to go harder-?"

Embarrassed tears pooled in her eyes and she wrestled ruthlessly out of his grip; he held on to her with a clenched jaw, one arm around her waist, the other across her shoulders.

"You didn't mention any of those things because it's easy to blame things on me isn't it?" he threw his arms up. "I'm always the one to blame for everything!"

Hermione flounced away from him, snatched a copy of the Daily Prophet from the waiting room table and flounced back. She rammed the paper violently against his chest, a murderous look in her eye.

"Look on page three. _That's_ why he felt sorry for me. He was the one bad mouthing you Sirius, saying you were going to be terrible father and role model. And being the complete idiot that I am, I _stood up_ for you!" her chest was rising and falling and she shook her head weakly, battling tears. "I won't be making that mistake again I assure you."

He laid the paper on the desk and ruffled through the pages, stopping dead when he saw the page she meant.

Under the headline 'IT LOOKS SIRIUS' was a picture of him.

Sprawled out on the stone floor he recognised to be the Three Broomsticks, his legs and arms tangled and limp with blood spurting from his lip, nose and head. Each time the picture moved, it would show a fist slamming into his head and his body falling onto a table; he would then roll to the ground with a final thump and lay still and lifeless in a shattering of broken glass shards.

"Oh shit," he muttered.

He shut his eyes, realising what he had done, that he had got it completely wrong. He turned to her with a heart heavy of guilt, reaching out for her hand helplessly. "Hermione, I'm so sorry-"

She held her hands up to her chest to stop him and with a breathy sob, tore off his leather jacket and threw it at him as if the very thing made her skin crawl.

"Re-schedule the scan till after Christmas Jess," she said, pulling a watery smile at her. "I can't be dealing with it now. And Sirius…?"

She slapped him across the cheek as hard as she could. "Fuck you."

* * *

><p><em><strong>BOOM. I revel in this drama. I really, really do. Do me a favour and thrill me with what you're thinking in those brilliant minds of yours! Did Sirius deserve the slap? Leave your thoughts!<strong>_


	8. A Nightmare and an Apology

Chap 8: _**A Nightmare and an Apology**_

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><p>After the incident at St. Mungos, the days flew by in a blur of snow blizzards, a flurry of Christmas cards and many last minute trips to the shops for presents and all too quickly it was Christmas Eve.<p>

All day Hermione and Ginny had been cooped up in their flat, bustling around here and there looking for spellotape to wrap up their mountain of presents. They left the ones they got each other out, because Hermione had wanted to wear Ginny's perfume gift when she went on her first date with her oh-so-sexy boss, Stanley Helbert that evening. Ginny the so called fashion guru had been at her side as they looked on at her wardrobe together, and three hours later, they had already picked out the clothes she would be wearing - a cute, casual but pretty floaty cream blouse and skin tight jeans that hugged her 'in all the right places', (according to Ginny), which meant her arse and thighs.

At five o'clock Luna showed up at their house, as she did every Christmas Eve, wearing a particularly large bobble hat and holding a bottle of pink champagne. Hermione sighed longingly when she saw the bottle and had to be shooed into Ginny's room to start on her make-up instead of having to watch her friends pop it open, gulp it down and finish it with an 'aaah'. It wasn't like she was a strong drinker, but it always seemed that when you couldn't have something, the temptation to do it was ten times worse.

She was sitting on the side of Ginny's bed, completely in the dark about where to start. She was never a knowledgeable one when it came to make-up - usually she didn't wear a scrap – but Ginny on the other hand had bags and bags on her dressing table, and after mooching through a load muttering 'what the hell is that?' to various strange looking cosmetic tools, she applied a few light brushes of mascara and clear lip gloss before joining the girls in the living room.

They were lounging lazily on the sofa, Luna lying upside down with her hair splayed on the floor and Ginny using spare Christmas wrapping paper as a blanket.

Hermione opened her mouth and cocked her eyebrow at them in an unspoken question and their eyes flicked to the half empty bottle of champagne on the table. She smiled. That had pretty much answered all her questions. No further explanations.

"What time is he collecting you?" Ginny asked her, but didn't pause for a reply. She patted the sofa with a pervy smile. "You – look - _hot!_ Get your sexy behind on here!"

Hermione grinned and shrugged her shoulders in a 'what can I say?' kind of way and glanced at what they were watching on the television – the muggle film series _Home Alone_. She let out an excited yelp and squeezed in the middle of them. "My dad used to love this film!" she exclaimed. "He used to laugh so much! I did too, though the pigeon woman terrified me."

Luna, still watching the screen from upside down turned to look at her. "The pigeon woman?" her eyes widened with interest. "Why were you afraid of her? She's really kind."

Hermione laughed. "Because unlike witches and wizards in the wizarding world, when I was younger my family and everyone I knew back then – all muggles - did not tend to associate themselves with birds in any way. We didn't have owls delivering our letters, we had a postman. So when I saw a woman with a hundred black birds covering her body and perching on her hat, I was rather horrified."

Luna hummed in amusement.

"Oh, speaking of letters," Ginny piped up, "one came for you when you were upstairs. The owl was scratching the window. I didn't recognise it, so it can't be anybody I know."

Hermione knew that this wasn't the case. She pursed her lips and though she was certain what the answer would be, she asked anyway. "What colour was the owl?"

She frowned as she tried to think back. "Like a dark browny black…" she shrugged. "I dunno, I can't really remember, we were on our second glass by that time. It was a really dark shade though. I know that for sure."

Hermione groaned and shut her eyes. "Where is it?" she said, sighing heavily. Ginny looked curiously at her, probably wondering why she was overreacting to a brown coloured owl and thinking she was going crackers.

"It's on the table," she told her, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "Why? Do you know who it's from?"

Upon spotting the sealed letter she pushed herself up and trudged across the room to the table, trying to work out if she was more angry or annoyed in that moment. When she picked up the letter, tore it open and threw the blank envelope on the floor along with all the other rubbish from a day's wrapping, she settled on the fact that she was more annoyed. When she read the contents –

_I'm sorry. _

She discovered she was much, much more angry.

She screwed up the letter and chucked it over her shoulder, forcing her mouth shut before she blinded them all with swear words. After a minute of being watched by Ginny and straining a clenched jaw, she had to say something. "For goodness sake," she hissed.

"I take it it's from Sirius then," Ginny remarked. There was a hint of amusement in her voice which was gone with a glare.

"It's the tenth one in four days," she told her, as if that statistic said it all. "You'd _think_ he'd have changed his words in each letter wouldn't you?" she answered herself with a vigorous shake of her head. "Oh no, no, no! _He_ writes the same two words in every single _bloody_ one! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" she blabbered; doing talking actions with her hands that made Ginny have to stifle her giggles. "Well I don't care! I don't care if he's sorry, I don't care what he's got to say! He deserved that slap!"

Like a dreaded sound in a horror movie, a scratching came from the window which made all their heads snap. Hermione swore when she saw the owl. The brown, almost black owl with a letter tied to its foot staring right at her.

"Alright that's just creepy," Ginny whispered. The owl scratched the window again.

Having lost interest in the film Luna shifted herself up-right and immediately started cooing the owl that seemed nothing less than a hideous beast to her two friends. She bounced over to the window and pressed her nose against it, still cooing. "Aw! He looks so cold! And _cute!_ He has snowflakes on his eyebrows!"

"What? Owls don't have eyebrows Luna!" Hermione said with a shrill of impatience. "Oh, Stanley better hurry up and arrive. I want to get out of this flat and that owl's view as soon as possible!" she snuck a nervous glance at the bird and looked quickly away again. "Why does it keep _staring _at me?"

"Because the letter's for you," Luna said simply. "And owls _do_ have eyebrows."

Hermione chose not to say anything.

Ginny was fidgeting with her blanket of wrapping paper and peering at the fireplace, a thought having just struck her. "Instead of hiding away at his house and sending you all these letters, why doesn't he come over and apologise to you himself?"

Her fellow flatmate smiled. "Because he knows I wouldn't let him in. Barstard," she added bitterly.

"Like you're not letting his poor owl in," Luna nodded pointedly, touching the glass in front of the owl's face to show that she was not as harsh as the others. She liked the little bird. "Just take the letter Hermione!" she said. "Accept it! Look at him, the poor boy's shivering!"

"Luna, stop giving the owl human features! He is clearly not a boy, and he clearly doesn't have any eyebrows! And as for the cold," she scoffed. "What do you want me to do? Let him perch on the radiator? Run a hot bath? He's an owl!" she exclaimed hysterically. "He's used to the cold all the time!"

Her hormonal rant was cut short by a knock at the door.

"It's Stanley," Hermione muttered to the pair both mirroring expressions of inquiry. It was Sirius sending the letters yes, but it was not (God help her) going to be Sirius at the door. "Are you sure I look okay?" she asked them, nibbling her bottom lip anxiously as she examined herself.

"You look lovely," Ginny assured her.

"Ravishing," Luna supplied in a misty voice which, as always, had her smiling.

She blushed slightly at the compliments and pranced through the hallway, nervously fixing her hair as she went. "Leave it!" Ginny shouted to her.

"It looks bushy!"

"You have to leave in a _bit _of the old Hermione so he knows it's you!"

Hermione, admitting the ginger one had a point, dropped her hands in a silent agreement and reached for the door.

* * *

><p>"<em>!" <em>

"_Push Hermione! That's it darling, push for me! Yes, good girl keep going, push! PUSH!" _

_Hermione, with her mass of unruly curls and her brow covered in sweat, looked from the kind but firm midwife with the name badge 'Jan' to Sirius, standing a foot away. He looked as though he'd been thrown in the deep end and was totally out of his depth hovering next to her as she lay on the bed, screaming so much her voice cracked raw. _

"_Sirius," she sobbed, her cheek flat against the pillow as she looked his way. "It hurts… I can't… I can't!..." _

_Sirius held her eye contact as she struggled and writhed in the covers, the shouts of encouragement from the midwife becoming a constant background noise. He glanced around in panic, unsure of what to do, what to say, how to go about assuring her that everything was going to be okay. "Sirius…" she whimpered again, and reached out for him with a pale, clammy hand which he clasped onto with his own. _

"_Hermione…" he croaked, his throat dry from his restraining emotions. "You're doing great love, really great… you're nearly there… we've nearly made it…"_

_She watched with watery eyes as he intertwined their fingers and raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. Then, before she could reply, another powerful contraction struck her and she threw her head back up to the ceiling in agony. "AAAARRRRRRRGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH H! SIRIUSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!" she wailed. _

"_I know it hurts love, I know it does, I'm right here with you, right here! I'm not going anywhere I swear," he spoke fiercely passionately in her ear and she rolled her head to the side to catch his eyes, leaking with his own tears. "You can do it," he whispered to her. "I believe in you."_

_She shook her head vigorously and let out another ear-splitting scream before abruptly snapping into an upright sitting position and clamping her hands onto her bump, a look of pain passing across her pretty face. "Something's wrong," she muttered to herself, her eyes wide and crazed as she glanced from Sirius to the midwife. "Something's wrong! I can't – I c-can't feel our baby!" _

"_KEEP GOING HERMIONE! THAT'S IT! WE CAN SEE THE HEAD – THE HEAD!" the midwife shouted back, totally ignoring her last words. Sirius watched, terrified, as she pulled on her plastic gloves and widened Hermione's legs further. He had that dreadful feeling of foreboding weighing heavy on his heart, and it wasn't going away. Staring deeply into Hermione's chocolate brown orbs, he knew she saw it too. _

"_SHOULDERS! SHOULDERS NOW!" the midwife cried, completely oblivious to the deathly silence of the room, and most significantly… the baby. "No," Hermione breathed, shaking in fear and shock, "NO!" _

_She felt the thud of the baby, and no cry sounded. This had to be a nightmare. It wasn't meant to be like this. Everything was all going wrong… oh so wrong. The midwife looked at them, a disgusting expression of pity and sorrow on her face as she bent out of view, examining… _

_She lifted back up into view holding a tiny baby in her arms, the size of a loaf of bread. Little fingers, a tuft of chocolate hair that was the exact colour between Hermione's and Sirius's, soft cheeks, tiny feet, eyes closed and dreaming of sweet something's… perfect. So perfect. _

_So unmoving. So motionless… so deadly silent. _

"_I'm so sorry," she told them, in the same voice of fake pity. "We done everything we could…" _

"_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" _

Sirius bolted upright, glancing around him like a madman being sent to Azkaban all over again. The room was blurry but so familiar – definitely not a hospital wing – though the coldness felt like one. He could feel the stinging icy sweat covering his body, wetting his shirt, his hair, his face… though he knew that part of the dampness of his cheeks was because of tears.

"No! No! NO! PLEASE…"

There was rapid thumps up the stairs and the sound of a door banging against a wall. "SIRIUS!"

He felt a sharp slap across his face and he shook out the wet hair from his eyes like a dog and blinked into focus. Rich maroon coloured walls surrounded him, various motorbike magazines scattered his floor and a poster of half-naked biker girls stared gobsmacked at him. He was in his bedroom. Crumpled maroon bed sheets curled around his shaking body, telling him that he was lying on his four poster bed.

He felt a warm hand squeeze his forearm.

"It's alright Sirius old friend, you had a nightmare, just a nightmare," Remus told him in a soft, comforting voice that he probably used when sending Teddy to sleep.

Sirius stared at him, eyes wide in shock and relief. "It's not real?"

"It's not real," Remus repeated. He pulled out his wand and performed a drying spell on his clothes and Sirius tingled pleasantly all over when his shirt immediately became bone dry and snug against his pale, sticky skin. It was like stepping into a hot shower after a night in the Antarctic.

"Hermione…" he breathed. His voice cracked with strain as he tried to sit up. "Has - has she replied to my letter?"

Remus shook his head and he groaned and fell back to his pillow.

"What's the time?"

"What were you dreaming about?"

Remus watched him with concern as he squinted out the window and pretended he hadn't heard him. "Half seven. We're meant to be going over to the Burrow for a meal and drinks, but if you aren't feeling well you can stay here-"

"No," he said firmly. An image of a sobbing Hermione lying on a hospital bed floated into his mind, and the mid wife holding their unmoving baby in her arms. Tears pricked his eyes and he swallowed thickly when he remembered that Remus was still looking at him. "No," he told him. "I'm fine. I want to see everyone."

* * *

><p>Hermione smiled fondly at him as he linked her arm with his and escorted her along the snowy streets of Covent Garden, making footprints on the ground. There were loads of people strolling about – groups of friends out for a Christmas Eve drink down the pub, couples hand in hand window shopping, tense looking parents trooping by with a couple of red-faced whining kids trailing behind them… and her and Stanley: out for their first date together.<p>

"Stanley!" she scolded playfully. "Where on earth are you taking me? I thought you said we were going to the Bluebell restaurant?"

"We are," he said.

He stopped walking abruptly and she made a squeak of surprise and grabbed on to his coat to stop her slipping over. He glanced at her and realised. "Oh sorry! Sorry-" He wove an arm round her waist and secured her balance. "Is that better? I'll give you warning next time I stop."

She nodded curtly. "Please do. Why did you anyway-?"

Her words got lost in her mouth as she took in the sight before her. They were standing on the corner of a street, secluded from the crowds of passers-by, in front of an enormous yellow hot air balloon the size of Hagrid's hut. Her jaw dropped and she looked from Stanley to the hot air balloon to Stanley again, as if trying to tell him that this _wasn't _an everyday experience for her and nor should it be for him.

But it was.

"It's mine," he told her, and he beamed when she stuttered and stared further. "There are certain advantages to having to wait two years for a date. The biggest is definitely the planning." He grinned sideways at her and she had a feeling he had to tighten his hold around her, because he looked so impossibly handsome in that moment, with the snowflakes in his blonde hair and his light blue warm eyes that glittered when he laughed… that she was pretty sure she had just fainted a little.

And then she remembered who she was; that she was _not _a hopeless romantic who swooned and fell at the feet of motorbike men or surfer look-a-likes like her friend Jessica would. Or Lavender would. She was Hermione Granger – a dignified, intelligent and elegant woman - and the thought sobered her up.

"Shall we dine then beautiful?" Stanley asked her, squeezing her hip with one masculine hand that Hermione had already seen – and already taken a liking to.

_You are Hermione Granger. _

"Yes, that would be lovely thank you." She allowed him to hoist her up and into the hot air balloon and she gripped onto the bars as she waited for him to join her. "Oh and Stanley," she said in a tone of exhaustion. "It's seven o'clock. You can't start calling me beautiful till at least ten."

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><p>Remus flicked the kettle on with his wand and with a long sigh, turned around and faced his long-time friend who was sitting at the table with a piece of parchment in front of him, as Sirius so often had been the past week. He appeared to be having a hard time thinking of what to write, which was mildly surprising. The man never had had any problem with it before – he always seemed to have a natural knack with words. Especially when it came to the female sex. Though Hermione was an exception to the rule.<p>

"So tell me, approximately how long has it been since you've seen her?" he asked him, sitting across from him and trying to unpick the troublesome situation that Sirius somehow _always_ found himself in.

"Since the pregnancy scan that didn't happen," Sirius mumbled in return.

Although in the past hour he had seen many times each time he closed his eyelids; her brow drenched with sweat, their fingers interlaced as he murmured words of comfort in her ear, holding her tightly as she cried into his neck, wetting his shirt with her tears. His fingers twitched in worry and he had to keep his eyes to the table to avoid the ever observant Remus noticing anything.

"Sirius? What's the matter-?"

Sirius immediately switched. He sucked his quill in thought and his grey eyes lit up like they did whenever he had a spectacular idea. "What if I tell her that I'll buy her the book shop, all the books, the whole store - if she talks to me again?"

On hearing the kettle click, the concerned frown disappeared from Remus's face as he got up to sort out their coffee. He stopped himself from rolling his eyes at Sirius's comment. "In a situation like this, I don't think bribery is the way forward." He retrieved two mugs from the cupboard and set them on the counter before turning back to him again. "You just need to speak to her properly. Face to face."

"I've tried that-"

"Have you?"

Remus sent him a questioning look of scepticism that made Sirius exhale heavily and like a put out child; he pushed the roll of parchment away from him and dropped his head to the table. His voice was muffled against the wood. "She knows that it's killing me waiting for her to reply. That's why she's dragging it out and taking so long," he murmured.

He tried to banish the hospital from his mind. Her voice in his ear. The silence of their baby…

"She knows how to get to you, and you know how to get to her," Remus summarised, nodding in understanding. "It's not ideal, but one day soon you'll pull together and come to an agreement and everything will work out."

Sirius sat up and ran two hands through his hair, as if the very action made things easier. "I hope so mate," he said. "I just…" He struggled to put what he wanted to say into words, so he stopped trying to. Remus returned to pouring the hot water into the mugs and stirring. Silence fell over them until Sirius looked up at him and broke it. "Is it so wrong of me to want to know that she's okay?"

His voice shook with emotion.

Remus glanced at him sharply, not quite seeing what he was getting at. It was the last thing he'd expected to come out of his mouth. He passed him a steaming mug of coffee. "What do you mean?"

_Don't think about it. Don't think about it. _

Sirius accepted the mug and took a long sip, using the time to reflect on the right words to say. "Well you're a dad," he stated rather unnecessarily and Remus grinned and nodded. "And you wouldn't let anything happen to your child right?" he asked. He steered his mind away from the night mare and Remus nodded again. "So when Tonks was pregnant with Teddy, you worried about her didn't you? You wanted to know where she was, what she was doing and if she was okay…" he went on, glancing at him for some sign of acknowledgement. "Didn't you?"

"Of course I did," he almost-laughed. "But I worry about her all the time like that – not only when she's pregnant – because that's what love is. We're married. I care about her welfare."

"So you must understand how it feels - not seeing Tonks in four days... I haven't seen Hermione or even heard a _word_ from her! I don't know if she's alright, what she's doing, where she's going or who she's with… she could have been drunk the last three nights in a row…"

_The thud of the baby. No cry sounded. The midwife's fake voice of pity. _

"_I'm so sorry… we done everything we could…" _

He couldn't hide it any more. "She could've – she could've lost the baby and I wouldn't even know!" Hot tears trickled down his cheeks, running into the prickles of his stubble. He let them fall.

"Oh, Sirius, you shouldn't be thinking things like that!"

He shook his head. Remus, more than anyone, should understand. "I'm sorry for hurting her before. It's just we – as you said – we know how to push one another over the edge, and I did that day. I – I didn't want to hurt her. Just for her to see…" He breathed out and closed his eyes. "After my nightmare I just… I know she's on a date but I I just want to know that she's okay," he murmured, his eyes watering with a fresh batch of tears. "That they're both okay…"

Remus looked at him with a deep sympathy and patted him on the shoulder. "Okay," he nodded. "You'll see her tonight Sirius. I promise."

Sirius tried to smile. "Thank you." He downed his coffee cup in the hope to start something stronger. "Happy Christmas Eve mate."

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><p><em><strong>I'm really proud of this chapter, I hope it lived up to expectations. Honour me with a good deed for the day and let me know your thoughts! We're nearing the 100 reviews now and I've never got that on a story before and... *squeals* I am so pathetically excited. On another note, WHY DID GARY OLDMAN NOT WIN THE OSCAR? HE IS SPINE-TINGLING-LY TALENTED AND HAS DONE SO MUCH FOR ACTING! GIVE THE MAN SOME RECOGNITION! One word: fuming. Absolutely fuming...!<strong>_


	9. Getting On For Baby Black

Chap 9: _**Getting on for Baby Black**_

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><p>It was 11:57pm precisely, and Hermione and Stanley was strolling arm in arm along the cobbled streets of Covent Garden. It was dark, and the river Thames shone all aglow from the light of the street lamps and the moon. Groups of men young and old burst out the doors of the King's Oak Pub, gripping onto each other as they staggered and bellowed the Pogues <em>'A Fairy tale of New York' <em>loudlyinto the night.

Stanley came to a stop at the end of the street by his hot air balloon and turned to face her with a grin. "So, have you enjoyed yourself?"

"Surprisingly… yes," she said, with a playful smile gracing her lips. The dinner at the Bluebell restaurant was lovely, though filling. She was eating for two, and yet she had consumed so much in the last three hours that she didn't think she'd be able to manage a single bite of Mrs Weasley's Christmas lunch tomorrow. The thought of it actually made her want to throw up.

He smiled handsomely back at her. "Surprisingly?" he leant closer so he could look her full in the eye. "What were you expecting?"

"Well, not a hot air balloon that's for sure." She beamed at her own joke and patted his cheek affectionately. "You've done well Healer Helbert; you've proved that you're not all about looks and books."

He laughed and reached down to tuck a strand of fallen hair behind her ear. "So have you Healer Granger… but then… I always knew you were something special." His hand moved to rest on her cheek, lightly stroking the soft skin of her cheekbone like it was a work of art. Hermione swallowed and glanced at the snowy ground, suddenly overcome with embarrassment and a burning question that needed answering.

She looked up at him with a tiny frown and furrowed eyebrows. "Of all the girls… why me?"

She wasn't exactly the type of girl that oozed sex, neither was she the kind that attracted men left right and centre. She was Hermione: bookish, feistily stubborn and bloody bossy at times and she wouldn't change for anyone.

He cocked his head at her question and gazed deeper into her eyes. "You know, I can't quite put my finger on it."

The clock struck midnight. It was officially Christmas Day. Cheers erupted everywhere with pub-goers shouting many drunken merry Christmas's and happy New Year's. They both glanced over at the crowds swarming the streets, both smiling little smiles, wrapped in each other's arms tighter than the scarves around their necks. He looked back at her and squeezed her waist.

"Merry Christmas Hermione," he whispered.

She smiled at the gesture and said it back. "Merry Christmas Stanley." She went to hug him, but he was already leaning in, and before she could blink his breath was on her lips, and he kissed her.

"You _KISSED_ him?"

Ginny's mouth was agape and gasping as she listened to Hermione explain every little detail of her date with oh so sexy Stanley Helbert.

It was one o'clock and they were back at their Hogsmeade flat, sitting cross legged on the sofa together in their pyjamas clutching a mug of hot cocoa and chatting about girly crap which, in that moment, was all they wanted to do. It was like they were thirteen and fourteen again, staying in Grimmauld Place for the Christmas holidays and talking about what boys they fancied and what they wanted to be when they were older. And now, seven years on they were older and were flatmates and were – _sort of_ – living out the lives they had always dreamed.

Hermione nodded, smiling somewhat guiltily. "He told me he loved me Gin."

"_WHAT!_"

It was true.

Stanley walked her back to her flat after Hermione politely declined the hot air balloon ride, (one trip was enough) and kissed her goodbye again at her door. It was a lingering one, and when they broke apart Hermione knew those three words were coming. The three words you're either desperate to hear or you dread to hear. It was, on all accounts asides from the hot air balloon - a perfect night, and one that ended, in many girl's opinions, in a perfect way.

"He just said, 'Hermione, I love you'," she told her, and took a long sip of cocoa as she replayed it in her mind.

"And? What did you say?" Ginny prompted her, eyes bulging at the prospect of Hermione in love. It took someone special to stir those kinds of feelings in her. No one had managed it yet.

"I didn't say it back!" she said defensively, scared at the very thought. "It's the first date we've been on! I just - I kind of said… thank you."

Ginny stared at her incredulously before shrieking with laughter and Hermione couldn't purse her lips tight enough to stop her giggles either. "Well," Ginny reasoned, once she had sobered up. "At least you were polite."

Remus and Tonks flooed in at half past two in the morning armed with presents and a large bottle of sparkling wine (for Ginny). Though somehow, Hermione knew from the looks on their faces as they stepped out the fireplace that they weren't just popping round to wish them a merry Christmas. What would be the point? They would be seeing them, and everyone else, at the Burrow at eleven o'clock for the opening of presents and Molly's long awaited Christmas lunch.

There was another reason, and Hermione had an inkling she knew what it was. _Who_ it was.

"Remus?" she inquired. "Does this visit have anything to do with Sirius by any chance?"

He must have decided there was no point in pretending anymore, because he dumped his mince pie on the coffee table and suddenly became much more sober. "Yes it does. I see you've got a lot of his letters," his amber eyes flicked to the pile of scrunched up parchment in the bin, and he crossed his arms disapprovingly. Hermione clenched her jaw in annoyance. The man had always been stern in protecting his friends. Ginny had to cough to hide her laugh.

"Yes I did," she said icily. "And I still haven't forgiven him."

"If you knew how sorry he is Hermione, I'm sure you'd feel different-"

"I don't care! If you knew what he said to me then _I'm sure_ _you_ would understand why I reacted the way I did!" it was like they were back in the classroom; he was Professor Lupin teaching her about Boggarts in Defence against the Dark Arts and she had her hand up ready to argue a point. "He practically shouted out about-" she sighed heavily. "…About a very intimate moment between the two of us. It was private and he announced it to the whole of St. Mungos and made me sound like I was some kind of tart!"

"We all know that you aren't Hermione. You are a sensible, responsible young woman…"

"I'm twenty one and _pregnant_ Remus!"

"And we are all here to support you love," Tonks spoke up, sliding in to sit next to her and putting an arm around her shoulders. "Remember what I said. Life doesn't always go the way you want it to. It's about compromising and making the most of a bad situation – however awful. Sirius can be a right barstard at times, so can this one," she pinched her husband's cheek lovingly and he bristled good naturedly. "And yes, sometimes Sirius can be too reckless than his own good, but we all can can't we? Behind the leather jacket, shirts, tattoos and boots Sirius has a good heart Hermione. He really does."

Hermione pursed her lips and dropped her eyes to her belly. She was starting to show, and it wouldn't be long before she was ditching the strappy tops and pretty blouses for baggy jumpers and sweatpants. She placed two protective hands over her stomach and sighed, knowing deep down that Tonks was right. She was very much like an older sister in that respect. She always knew the right words to say, always made sense of a confusing situation when no one else could.

"I know that but I just-" she hesitated and met Tonks's trusting eyes and knew she could tell her. "I suppose I don't know what to say to him anymore," she rested her head on her shoulder. "It's been so long since I had a proper conversation with him … the constant arguing is exhausting for me."

"It's exhausting for him too darling," she said, stroking her hair. "Earlier, when Remus was round Grimmauld he heard shouting and yelling from upstairs and when he ran up…" she cleared her throat and exchanged a look with Remus.

"He was on his bed, drenched with sweat and thrashing about," Remus continued, taking a seat across from them. "He was yelling your name Hermione, and kept begging and screaming for someone to wake up. He was crying. I'd never seen him look so -" he visibly shivered as if the very thought haunted him and looked up at her. "Anyway, I got him to calm down and have a drink, and later on he told me what happened. He dreamt that you had miscarried and - and lost the baby."

Hermione shot up as if she'd been burned. "He - he … _what? Oh my goodness-!"_

"It's been haunting him ever since you last spoke to him," Remus rushed on. "_That's _why he's been trying to contact you. Merlin knows he's sorry for what he said at the hospital. Every time I've seen him this week he's been sitting at the table with piece of parchment and a quill, trying to make it up to you. That's why I came; I promised him I would talk to you." He stood up and rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You can't shut him out anymore. All he cares about is that you and the baby are okay. We're all here for you love. We want to help the two of you get through this and work it out… somehow."

Hermione exhaled shakily and fanned her moist eyes. "I- I know… thank you," she choked, and sobbed. "I'm sorry about this, I feel so ridiculous! I can't understand why I'm feeling so emotional all the time…" she cried. Tonks, Remus and Ginny all exchanged amused looks, knowing exactly why. "But oh my goodness! I can't believe he thought – the baby – me – miscarrying," she muttered, quiet in shock. "I'm sorry for being such a pain. I have no idea how you all put up with my mood swings, I really don't-" she laughed weakly and the couple pulled her into a warm embrace, chuckling and rubbing her back.

"Just think, only seven months to go," Ginny exclaimed brightly.

Hermione cried harder.

A cup of tea and several biscuits later Remus had one foot in the fireplace, about to floo to collect Teddy from the Burrow where he was being babysat by Molly. Tonks was holding his arm, about to follow after him. "Sorry," she apologised quickly. "I just wondered if you could give this to Sirius?" she handed him a neatly rolled parchment and he took it with a smile and a curious quirked eyebrow.

"Helping him ease his conscience," she explained with a smile. "I would like him to get some sleep tonight. It is Christmas after all," she added with a little laugh. Remus chuckled and said the letter would help him 'more than you realise'. She didn't know what he meant by that, but she pretended she did.

After collecting Teddy from the Burrow and flooing to Grimmauld Place, Remus and Tonks stumbled up the dark staircase, murmuring a good night to Phineas Nigellus as the past his frame. Teddy went out like a light as soon as he hit his soft car-bed, and a sleepy Tonks had collapsed on her and Remus's bed, still partially clothed.

Because it was Christmas, they were staying at Grimmauld Place. Sirius had given them their own room at the house with a wardrobe full of their clothes should they ever stay over; which they did often - at least once or twice a week. Harry and Ron practically lived there too when they were in London for Auror training, and right now they were staying at the Burrow, so Sirius needed company. With everything that was going on at the moment, he couldn't be shut up alone in his childhood home. Although it had been redecorated and Mrs Black's portrait was pried from the wall at long last, there were some markings – the air of the house – the memories that came with it – that couldn't be changed.

He tip toed to the door, switching off the light on the way out. He had the roll of parchment Hermione had given him in his hand, and set off to find Sirius. He was likely to be in the library or the drawing room – but wherever he was lurking, it was guaranteed he would have a glass of whisky to accompany him in his lonely solitude.

He found him five minutes later.

He was lazing on the armchair in the darkness of the drawing room, harbouring a glass of whisky and staring in silence. The amber colour of his drink shimmered in the dusky shadowy light of the window behind him.

Though his face was half concealed in the darkness, Remus could tell that he was still wide awake, alone with his thoughts and unable to sleep. He could see the movement of his arm as he raised the glass to his lips and drained every last drop. Then he shifted to grab the bottle from the coffee table and filled it up again. Remus closed his eyes briefly and wrestled away the thought that Sirius was turning into an alcoholic.

"Did you speak to her?" he eventually said, breaking the deathly silence. His voice was rough, raspy and strained, like he hadn't used it for hours.

"Yes I did," Remus said.

He bowed his head to the floor. "How is she?"

Remus could tell he was restraining himself from desperately sprinting over to him and shaking the truth out of him. He crossed the room to the armchair. "She's feeling quite - er… _emotional_ at the moment. She was crying a lot you know. I think at one point we got her to stop for five minutes or so and then Tonks asked her if she wanted a cup of tea and – just like that – it set her off again," he shook his head and chuckled. "Still, I told her about what happened and I think she may have forgiven you. She wrote you a letter. There might be tear drops on it. Hopefully you'll be able to see what it says. Here." He handed him the roll of parchment.

Sirius leant forward and took it with a slight tremble to his hands. He unravelled it quickly, his grey eyes wide and alert as they scanned over the letter.

"What did she say?"

Eyes stuck on the paper, it took him awhile to show any kind of emotion, but eventually Sirius smiled slightly to himself and visibly relaxed.

"Cat got your tongue?" Remus asked him jokingly. Sirius looked up and scowled at him half-heartedly. "What does it say?"

He gave an elegant riffle to the parchment. "'Sirius,'", he read aloud. "The baby and I are okay. Please, stop worrying. I shall see you in a few hours. P.S-" he grinned broadly, and scratched his stubble. "P.S. don't drink too much today. I prefer you conscious. Although it may not seem it'."

Remus laughed and Sirius chuckled lowly, a pleased a grin on his lips. He looked over it for another minute before tucking the note safely away in his shirt pocket.

Then he heaved himself up, knocking back the contents of his drink and setting it on the table with a thud. "I'll stick to butter beer for the rest of the day then. Or maybe one or two glasses of elf wine," he told him, still smiling happily. "Weak stuff butterbeer," he remarked with a smirk. "She won't be able to believe it." He fell back into his chair. "Thank merlin they're both okay," he murmured, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He was exhausted with worry.

Remus nodded, and then randomly burst out laughing. Sirius peered up at him from behind his hands and he elaborated. "I just can't believe you're going to be a dad." He continued chuckling.

Sirius went to glare at him but found he couldn't hold it and started laughing too.

* * *

><p>The following day, after watching Teddy rip open his presents and roar with delight when he saw that his Uncle's present was a mini motorbike, Sirius arrived with Remus, Tonks and Teddy at the Burrow at midday, their stomachs grumbling and ready to be satisfied with one of Mrs Weasley's out of this world delicious hearty meals. Her Christmas lunches were on a whole new level.<p>

Rather unsurprisingly, Molly wasn't too impressed when the four year old rolled up at their door seated on his motorbike. There was no doubt that she thought the bike was dangerous, and after a while – _very_ annoying. Little Teddy had taken a liking to slamming his podgy hand on the horn button, and making a loud beeping sound which caused anyone standing within five metres of the damn thing to go practically deaf. The terror kept doing it almost constantly around the house when everyone was trying to have a conversation.

Most of the men found it amusing. But Molly didn't. She made Sirius more than aware of it too - sending him a stern look as she wished him a merry Christmas. He took it all with a pinch of salt. Molly loved him really. Very, _very_ deep down.

He leant against the kitchen counter alongside Remus, swigging butterbeer from a goblet as he chatted to Ron and Harry about Ginny's latest victory with the Holyhead Harpies the week before. "Who's the beater?" Ron asked Harry. "That blonde one?"

Harry looked warily over at his Godfather and Remus before turning back to his best friend. "The one with the huge breasts?" Ron nodded eagerly, and Remus chuckled into his goblet, before murmuring in Sirius's ear. "He sounds like you."

Fred strolled into the kitchen, throwing up a bottle of wine and catching it as if it was plastic, not glass. "Fancy a glass of red before we eat Sirius mate?" Sirius raised his butterbeer up bitterly and Fred looked surprised. "Butterbeer?" Sirius growled and nodded. To sacrifice alcohol on Christmas Day was a big thing for him. He hoped Hermione appreciated that. He was only doing it because she told him not to. "Remus?" Fred asked, and predictably, Remus declined too. The smell of turkey and pig in blankets floated from the oven and Ron moaned loudly, making Fred quickly pause to glance at him.

"Alright there Ronnie? Drooling enough?" he quirked an eyebrow and smirked at George. "First man to get a hard on over food you reckon George?"

"Gotta be Fred, ooh turkey, so good – so good!" George groaned, mimicking sex sounds. "You look like you've just seen a veela sweetheart! Mmm, veela girls," he added with a cheeky lick of lips. Sirius wanted to tell them that he had two in one night and they weren't all what they cracked up to be, but he refrained, knowing that with his luck Hermione would find out about that too. He sighed heavily and glanced at Harry and Remus, who were looking over George's shoulder at the new arrivals behind them and chuckling.

"'Appy Christmas 'Arry, Ron, Fred, George. I 'ope I am not interrupting anything."

George spun around, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. "Oh! Er - sorry Fleur I-I didn't see you there. Happy Christmas!" he exclaimed merrily, but he was fooling no one.

"Veela girls hmm? I'll have a word with you later alright George?" Bill said smiling overly at him, as he thumped him on the shoulder. George nodded and fell silent, watching his older brother leave the room. The rest of them to stifle their laughter behind their hands or as coughs.

Fleur shifted seven month old Victoire in her arms.

"Sirius, can you 'old Victoire for ze moment? I need ze toilet and I don't know where Bill 'as gone," she explained, and before he could speak she had passed the gurgling blonde haired baby into his arms and dashed off.

Then he heard Molly crying an over the top merry Christmas to the new arrivals in the hallway and all talking stopped as if he heard Hermione's voice.

"Sorry we're late Mrs Weasley, I had to call my parents in Australia and they made me stay on for a while. It's a pound a minute in muggle money to make telephone calls to Australia from England, can you believe it? Completely barbaric, I'm going to have to work more hours next month to make up for it…" her voice became higher like it did when she was irritated by something and Sirius heard Tonks mutter in Remus's ear 'the hormones are at it again'.

"Nonsense dear, you're already working enough hours at the hospital, and you're _too thin!"_ Molly said, as she always did. "You look beautiful though darling… the dress suits your figure. Everyone's in the kitchen, if you want to go through dear, we haven't sat down yet," she turned to her daughter and hugged her before eyeing her barnet. "What _is_ that in your hair Ginny?"

A few footsteps and Hermione appeared in the doorway and the room burst into greeting. Most people made their way towards her or sprang up from their chairs to say hello with a hug and a kiss and happy Christmas. Molly was right: her soft black dress did suit her figure. It clung to her body, accenting the curve of hips and the outline of her bump, and her derriere – which Sirius noticed Fred and George ogling at. Her hair was up in a casual, messy bun with a few strands of hair falling down, leaving her pale neck and collar bone exposed.

Sirius kept to the back of the crowd, tossing little Victoire in the air and smiling as she giggled and gurgled with happiness. He could feel Hermione's eyes on him. Fleur kept laughing her high-pitched laugh and praising Sirius that he was a natural with children, and, when he handed the baby back, he caught Hermione's eye from across the room and held it, neither of them looking away.

"More wine Sirius?" Arthur asked, holding up the bottle.

Sirius quickly tore away from her chocolates and glanced up at him. "Er – no thanks, I'm good mate."

Arthur raised his eyebrows in surprise, as did everyone else who heard; Tonks almost choked on a brussel sprout in shock and Remus had to smack her on the back. After the initial few seconds of shock, he nodded understandably and moved on around the table. Molly bustled around serving up the dinner, the clonks of the pots and pans like music to their ears. It was the perfect Christmas scene, plates and plates of food, goblets of wine, and the huge turkey being banged in the middle like a mountain. Ginny joined them, comfortably falling into a seat next to Harry; peering round the table, Hermione, Sirius noticed, was conveniently sat in the middle of Fred and George, who were whispering things into her ear. Presumably they were naughty, because she was blushing and laughing. The twins had always flirted with her, and it was harmless. And yet, as Sirius watched her bite her lip and react with a teasing smack to a remark Fred had just made, he felt jealously ebbing away at him. His chews slowed down and his fork paused in mid air; his eyes were glued to her. In that dress, Sirius didn't want her in close proximity to any man... but him.

One more laugh from her end and he couldn't take anymore.

"Is it me or is it stuffy in here?" he said to Remus, wincing as he struggled to swallow his mouthful of food quickly. He abruptly stood up and his chair scraped against the floor. All eyes looked at him. Molly looked startled.

"Sirius?"

"I'm just going to get some fresh air, my head is spinning," he said, "I won't be a moment." He pushed past the table and headed for the front door without looking back.

The front door shut and little Teddy started calling for his uncle to come back. Victoire started crying in her basket. Harry and Remus got up to go after him, but Harry was pulled back by Arthur, and Remus by Tonks. Remus looked at her for an explanation and her eyes flicked to Hermione, who threw her napkin on the table and was up and walking out the door.

All the table occupants glanced around at each other and resumed eating in silence.

Hermione stepped out the house and closed the door behind her and stared around. She saw him straight away. He was standing with his forehead against the wall, his hair blowing in the wind; a cigarette pursed between his lips and a lighter in his hand.

"Sirius?" she asked, starting towards him. "Are you okay?"

"Keep away from me," he said, without looking up.

She stilled. "Excuse me?"

"Stay away, alright?" He took a drag from his cigarette and turned his back on her, a clear dismiss.

Hermione's breath hitched, and she took a shaky step back. Her face hardened and she crossed her arms, and knew that she felt a spark of hate flare through her body. She immediately regretted ever writing him a letter, regretted ever feeling guilty for ignoring his letters for four days, regretted ever having joined him on that sofa that night on Halloween. She shook her head and forced a smile.

"Why are we even trying to make this work? It won't. You're so hot and cold! One minute you're sending me letter after letter saying you're sorry and when I come and talk to you, you say to keep away? I'm sick of this Sirius. You aren't even worth going through this aggravation for." She grasped the handle of the door and he looked up. "Let's agree on this: I will never like you, you will never like me and this was all one big mistake."

She pulled the door handle to go back inside and he grabbed her wrist and held the door shut with one hand.

"For fuck's sake, I meant keep away from me because I'm _smoking!_" he clarified loudly, taking the cigarette out of his mouth and waving it. "Do you think I enjoy arguing with you all the time?"

Hermione frowned slightly and squinted at the lit cigarette held in between his fingers. She unclenched her jaw, and felt her lips opening in an 'O'. To say she felt stupid would be an understatement.

Sirius didn't drop her wrist. He held slid his hand down to grasp her hand.

"Look, I know it's bad. I'm trying to quit."

Hermione watched him in awe as he dropped the lighter to the floor and crushed it beneath his boot and lobbed the cigarette over his shoulder. He turned back to face her. "I can't continue smoking and being around the baby. I didn't realise how unhealthy it was. The smoke contains fuck loads of toxic chemicals and it'll get into your bloodstream and stop the baby's oxygen flow. It effects their growth and development as well, you know. It leaves them vulnerable to sudden infant deaths and..." he shook his head and waved his hand to indicate the list went on. "It doubles the risk of miscarriage… still birth. I don't want to have that on my conscience," he muttered.

They looked at each other for a long moment, both remembering his nightmare; how he was thrashing around on his bed, sweat covering his body and shouting her name and for someone to wake up. They exhaled and met each other's eyes, sharing and communicating unspoken words of worry, grief and apology, before they both simultaneously dropped their gaze to her small baby bump.

"How did you know all that?" she whispered, quiet and frozen in shock. Sirius didn't seem the type to care too much about factual information like that, but the words flowed out of his mouth like reciting a poem, and Hermione was completely and utterly stunned.

He looked up and saw she was still staring at him and smiled slightly. "I read it somewhere."

He said it with a shrug, as if it was normal for him to read; but then, come to think of it, he did have a huge library in his house that was fit for a bloody King after all. She stared further and he grinned lopsidedly. "What? Don't tell me you think it's only Healers that ooze intelligence."

Her jaw dropped in astonishment for a moment, and he barked with laughter and ran a hand through his shaggy locks.

It left his hair and she felt - rather than saw - his hand touch her belly. It was warm, and she found herself smiling at the sensation. "I don't know why you're doing that," she feebly chided him, "the little thing won't be kicking yet, it's too busy growing."

Though she felt herself place her hands on top of his and press them into her belly anyway. He swallowed hard and they gazed at one another.

"You know, our baby's going to be a clever one," he said conversationally.

She nodded thoughtfully, never really having thought about it before. She had thought about one certain characteristic that was difficult to forget when it came to having a Marauder's baby, though. She peered up at Sirius and let her eyes wander to the tattoos on his chest. "I hope they aren't too much of a troublemaker."

He met her eyes, humming in agreement. "They'll get that from you, so you best stop causing me all this trouble Hermione."

He fully expected the smack on the arm she gave him. It was out of habit, and she stammered an apology quickly after. Sirius merely laughed again, his barking laughter – which, for the first time, she found incredibly endearing as opposed to irritating. They were still smiling at each other, and his hands were still on her bump, rubbing it in soothing motions. Then, unexpectedly, he sunk to his knees in front of her.

She rose her hand to her forehead and shook her head, silently begging him to not do whatever he was about to do. Yes, single mother pregnancy was regarded in a much stricter fashion in the wizarding world than it did in the muggle world, but that didn't mean he had to do this. She squeezed her eyes shut and begged that he would not ask her the question.

Upon seeing the look on her face he chuckled and coughed slightly to get her attention. She opened her eyes and he patted her thigh reassuringly. "Hermione, I'm not proposing."

She squeaked and sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. You'd be pushing you're luck."

He raised his eyebrows in a challenge and she nodded curtly as if to say 'you heard me'. Grinning widely and chuckling, he shuffled closer to her, his hands slipping to wrap around her knees. Hermione had to bite her lip to stop herself from shaking with sobs when Sirius kissed the bump and pressed his cheek against it. He was showing a side of him that she didn't think the ex-convict had. He was always so bold, boisterous and so arrogantly charming with his swagger and leather jackets, rich cologne and everything bloody else. _Never_ soft and gentle. It was unheard of, and Hermione would cherish the moment, because she had a feeling it didn't come round very often.

"Daddy loves you," she heard Sirius murmur to the bump.

He kissed it again and looked up to her, his grey eyes bright and twinkling with blissful joy. She smiled down at him with wet eyes, encouraging him on whilst trying to hold in her sniffles at the same time. Sirius went back to the bump. "-Lots and lots," he whispered. "So does mummy," he lay his masculine hand over her delicate one and intertwined their fingers as he rubbed against the small bump where their baby grew. "Stay warm in there," he smiled. "We can't wait to meet you. See you in seven months little baby Black."

Hermione felt the tears trickle down her cheeks, then swore under her breath because she knew her mascara would be running, and probably looked like a drowned rat. With one last kiss he stood back up and faced her, ruffling his hair simply because they had shared a weirdly enchanting moment and now they had both run out of things to say… nearly.

"So we'll do this?" he asked. "Get on for the baby's sake?"

His voice was gruff and Hermione nodded and peered up at him with big, chocolate eyes. "We can do it. But, considering the emotional state I'm in, we shouldn't talk to each other unless it's about the baby."

She saw him visibly tense. There was hurt in his eyes, but then it was gone and he was shrugging nonchalantly. "If that's what you want."

"I just think it'll be easier," she said.

He nodded, but she had a feeling she had once again annoyed him. Did he want to speak to her then? She thought about asking him, but then he was turning around to go inside, and she had hastily tugged on his arm to stop him.

"What?" he was looking at the floor.

"I won't keep you in the dark this time, I promise." He still wasn't looking at her, and she tugged on his leather jacket to get him to look her way. "Sirius..."

He eventually looked up.

"I will reply to your letters. I'll send you an owl letting you know I'm okay, and when I have scans at the hospital I'll let you know so you can come to them too. I want this to work, Sirius." She was being sincere, she only hoped he could see it. He said nothing, yet again, and she touched his cheek. "I'll let you know Sirius, I promise."

"All the time?" he murmured, his eyes flickering over her face. "Because I will be worrying about you all the time." She felt him wrap his arms around her, holding her tight.

"All the time. Baby Black and I... we'll be alright."

* * *

><p><em><strong>The writer's block that I got on this chapter was unbearable, hence why it took so long. But I hope you all enjoyed it. Thanks for reading guys and as ever, leave a review! Much love<strong>_


	10. God Gifted Me with Three Legs

Chap 10: _**God Gifted Me with Three Legs**_

* * *

><p>Christmas at the Burrow faded in a blur of photographs, bubbling tankards of butterbeer, the men's drunken rowdy singing of "Sirius's song" 'God Rest Ye, Merry Hippogriffs' and second helpings of Mrs Weasley's melting Christmas pudding.<p>

Then New Year's Eve quickly rolled around along with the '5, 4, 3, 2, 1…" and the eruption of fireworks and the pop of more champagne. Hermione was whisked away from the merriment of her family of gingers, women with bubble-gum pink/wild curly blonde hair and the odd friendly werewolf to be with Stanley. On a lit yacht. In the middle of the Thames.

Stanley had swung Hermione in a dramatic dance move and lowered her to the floor (in a very Prince Charming-like way) and kissed her full on the lips. New Year's Eve was the one time of year – for everyone - where a kiss was the taster of the relationship that was to come, in the same way a trailer was a teasing preview of the film to come. It promised new beginnings. New excitement, new love.

The following day Fred and George cornered her with playful waggling eyebrows and cheeky smirks and Hermione had somehow given into begging and gave them a thorough account of what happened. The roars of laughter still rang in her ears even now.

"The bloody absurdity of it all! Can he be more ridiculously over the top?" George snorted, wiping his eyes of tears (from laughing too much). He shook his head and groaned almost irritably. "A _yacht_ for fuck's sake! How the heck are we going to win her over now Fred?"

"He's a healer and has the whole sex-bomb surfer-dude thing going on which clearly Hermione goes for and we're ginger and own a shop! We don't stand a chance Georgey!" Fred cried dramatically, and pushed his bottom lip out, looking to be on the verge of tears.

Hermione's eyes flashed and she rested her hands on her hips. "What _rubbish!_ I do _not_ go for sex bomb surfer dudes! …Or whatever you said," she added with a sniff and pushed out her jaw defiantly like she always did when proving a point.

She met up with Ron and Harry in a coffee shop and told them too, only to get more or less the same reaction.

"So the bloke had a _hot air balloon_ on the first date and a _yacht_ a week later? I don't know who's more mental – _him_ or _you_ for not escaping while you could!" Ron was chomping on a sausage roll and spraying her and Harry with crumbs. They were far too used to their best friend's eating manners to be revolted anymore.

Still, three months later after many, many dates in very swish places of London, Hermione knew it would be simply cruel to deny him any longer – it was coming up to two and half years now. Each day she arrived at work Jessica's (and all her other colleagues') first lines were: "have you accepted him yet?" She couldn't very well deny him any longer, and she didn't want to either. The man was a smooth talker, could make her smile, laugh and blush all at once. He even snuck up on her for quick cuddles in the corridors like they were teenagers again.

She'd be a liar if she said she didn't fancy him.

On 31th March, when she was five months pregnant to the day, it became official. Hermione and her boss were an item. Going out. Boyfriend and girlfriend. However you put it - they were together.

Fred and George rushed into the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, fully aware that they were late for their monthly Order meeting and not caring in the slightest. They had news to spread. They burst into the room panting. At the loud interruption all members turned swiftly to look at them.

Arthur was standing at the head of the long table, shuffling a stack of papers in his hands and looking tired after a long day at the office. "Where have you been boys?" he asked, trying to frown deeply at his sons and pretend he was more annoyed that he actually was. They saw right through it and so did Molly, so she took over.

"What time do you call this? The meeting started fifteen minutes ago!" she screeched, advancing rapidly forward round the table with a scolding finger. Harry caught Ron visibly flinching at the ear splitting tone of his mother's voice and grinned easily.

The twins weren't unfazed by their mother in the slightest. Instead, they seemed to become more desperately excited and giddy as they looked on laughing at the other table occupants. "Has no one heard?" George gasped, bemused and thrilled all at once.

"Heard what?" Molly snapped.

Remus was looking at them with raised eyebrows of interest, as was Sirius as he stifled a yawn and leant back in his chair and Tonks, Bill, Fleur, Kingsley, Mundungus, and of course 'the kids' (who were no longer kids) Harry, Ron, Ginny and Luna. Hagrid and Aberforth both cocked their heads to show they were listening and probably smiling under their grizzly bushes of beards. 'Professor' Minerva McGonagall seemed somewhat amused as she eyed her two of her most troublesome students (and probably two of her favourite).

Fred couldn't hold it in any longer. "Hermione's going out with that healer git! _Our_ Hermione!" he burst out. A silence fell over everyone and he met the stormy eyes of his mother and corrected himself hastily. "Er – I mean – Hermione's going out with that healer _guy_," he clarified with a nod.

"They're _together?_" Ron gasped. He looked horrified and quite sick.

"They have been dating for months Ron," Ginny said, rolling her eyes. "It's not exactly surprising is it?"

"Well I didn't think she'd actually accept him," he mumbled. "He's completely barmy! _Mental_ I'm telling you!"

"She dated you didn't she?" George said.

Everyone laughed and Ron went pink.

"Ronald Bilius Weasley! Stanley Helbert is Head Healer at St. Mungos!" Molly shrilled a reddish tinge to her cheeks. "He is certainly not barmy _or _mental! I have actually spoken to him on a few occasions. He is a very nice man," she added with a knowledgeable sniff.

"Handsome too," Tonks chipped in, smirking and steadfastly ignoring her husband's arched eyebrow.

Fred shook his head and muttered something that sounded a lot like 'pretty boy' under his breath.

"I bet she's so happy! I should go over and congratulate her. Where is she? Does anyone know?" Tonks asked, glancing at everyone. "She's never misses meetings." They all shrugged and looked at each other, just as curious as she was. She raised her eyebrows at Sirius when he remained silent. "She sends you letters doesn't she Sirius? Has she told you where she is?"

"Devon," he said, looking incredibly bored. "Didn't say why, didn't say who with."

"Er - she's with Stanley, staying in his country house," Harry spoke out and quickly dropped his eyes to the table when Sirius glanced at him. "She said everything was becoming a bit too much and she needed to get away for a bit and Stanley said she could stay for… as long as she liked…" he trailed off. His godfather crossed his arms, and he felt more uncomfortable by the second.

Ron nodded reassuringly at Sirius, "She promised she'd be back in about ten days for the check-up though. Five months along ay? Exciting time!" he smiled and said it like it somehow made everything okay. Like the fact that she was merely returning was a miracle. There were a few excited 'five months!'-'not long to go!' squeals and Harry stared at his godfather as his grey eyes clouded impossibly dark and unreadable.

"She's going to be back in ten days?" he asked them, though it wasn't a question, because he already knew the answer. He didn't say anything for ages, just shook his head and smiled widely, though it didn't reach his eyes; they were as menacing as ever. He abruptly stood and held out an empty hand to them. "Give me the muggle telephone number."

Ron stared at him as if he'd turned half man half rhinoceros. "The Felly _what?_" he spluttered, and his father rolled on the balls of his feet and beamed "_Tele_phones Ron! They're the most _fascinating_ objects-"

"The telephone number for the cottage," Sirius hissed with impatience. "She must have given you it, she wouldn't be stupid enough not to. What is it?" he clapped him on the cheek with his open palm and held out his hand again.

Ron winced at the smack and glanced at Harry looking completely clueless. "I have no idea what he's going on about mate, why would I have a fellyfone number for _Stanley's_ cottage-!"

"Did she give one to you Harry?" Remus asked.

"Er – maybe, but I don't think so," Harry replied. "I mean – she doesn't usually leave the number." Sirius swore loudly and McGonagall didn't hesitate to swat him sharply on the arm. "I'll go and check," Harry told him, "I have the letter upstairs in my trunk somewhere." He dashed away, his thumping footsteps resounding throughout the house.

Sirius swore again, but this time under his breath. "I can't believe her," he seethed, biting his thumb nail as he paced up and down. "What if something happened to her or the baby and she couldn't get through to us? A load of death eaters could stroll in and kidnap her and torture her like they did before!"

"_Christ _Sirius will you calm down!" Tonks cried hysterically. "Stop and think about what you're saying! Firstly, thanks to Molly over here Bellatrix is dead and Arthur's told us today there are only about ten to twenty death eaters left in Britain. That's less five percent of Voldemort's followers before! And of all the places they could be why would they be in _Devon?_"

"BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE HERMIONE IS!" he yelled, his arms flaying furiously. "SHE'S A MUGGLEBORN AND THE BRAINS OF THE GOLDEN TRIO! SHE'S THEIR NUMBER ONE FUCKING TARGET-!"

"Sirius Black! Will you_ calm down!_" Molly shrieked. Her temple was throbbing and she was as red as a beetroot.

"He does have a point Molly," Kingsley said in his deep voice of calm. "Draco told me at the ministry that he has heard word that Greyback still wants Hermione in every sense of the word."

There were a number of exchanged looks and held breaths in the room as they watched Sirius. He stood still and staring at Kingsley, his chest rising and falling with suppressed pants. "What did you just say?" he shook his head slightly, his rough voice barely louder than a whisper and filled with mounting dread.

Bill cleared his throat and took a step forward. "Er - in the last months of the War Fenrir's thirst for blood was truly horrific… he killed and ate numerous muggles and people who didn't support Voldemort and a few times in the last few months he tried to do the same to Hermione. Before Bellatrix tortured her Greyback asked if he could have her when she was finished. Said she was a tasty treat and that he would take care of her…" Sirius's stilled and paled. "And then," Bill continued, "he tried to – er… force himself on her."

Sirius didn't say a word and, before anyone could stop him, he was dodging and shoving his way around the table and out into the hall.

Bill followed hastily after him. "He didn't actually do it Sirius, Hermione managed to fight him off-"

"HARRY!" he bellowed up the stairs. "BRING ME THAT NUMBER NOW!" he turned away, his jaw clenching. "If she hasn't given it to him I'm going to kill her," he told them.

"How charming," McGonagall quipped.

Sirius buried his face in his hands. He was trembling. Remus leant in to whisper in his ear. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you before. We thought it'd be best if she told you. I suppose that now the war is over she didn't think you needed to know." He squeezed his shoulder in apology. Sirius ignored him and glared up at the stairs again.

"HARRY!"

"I've got it, I've got it!" came his voice. He raced down the stairs with the long letter in his hand and the phone number on the bottom of it. "'017085635182," he read out, squinting. "But she - she said only to ring it in emergencies."

Sirius clapped his godson on the back in thanks and rushed to the telephone on the wall, everyone watching him as he stabbed in the numbers. "She's going to be furious at you you know," Harry said quietly.

Sirius smiled to one side of his mouth and chuckled lowly. "She's always furious at me." He drummed his tattooed fingers against the walls manically and growled. "Pick up the bloody phone woman!"

In Devon Hermione was curled up on the fluffy king sized bed reading _'Bonjour Tristesse'_ a French novel she had been engrossed in for hours. Stanley was fast asleep and lightly breathing behind her, his cool mint breath was blowing against her cheekbone. After yawning for a third time in a minute, she decided enough was enough for one day and closed the book and left it against her belly as she snuggled into Stanley's body.

She had been asleep for about half an hour when the phone rang from her bedside table. Stanley didn't even stir.

Squinting, she blindly reached for the receiver. Once she gripped it she flopped back down onto Stanley's chest and brought the phone to her ear. Her eyes fluttered closed and she fought off a monster yawn. "H-h-hello?"

"Peu tôt pour dormir n'est-ce pas?"

Hermione knew his voice straight away, opened one eye and shut it again after she told herself that it simply _couldn't _be. "Who is this? I've been reading French all day," she muttered, letting out a very un-Hermione like giggle. "But Bonjour, je sais mais je suis tellement fatigué!"

"Je m'appelle Sirius, comment te'appelles tu?"

Hermione smiled and shook her head at his annoying ways. "Je m'appelle Hermione," she said, "-and I'm sleeping. But it's lovely to finally speak to a French man Sirius. I know a man who can speak the language but he's not very good. Coincidentally he has the same name as you, how _odd_-"

She heard him bark a laugh and growl at the same time. "Very odd. And it's even odder that he wants you to come home."

She switched phone ears so she could lie down, close her eyes and talk at the same time. She just forgot the talking part.

"Hermione, did you hear what I said?" Sirius voice was soft, like somehow, without being with her, he knew she was on the verge of sleep. She nodded and remembered that he couldn't see her.

"Yes," she mumbled. "I'll be home in… ten – ten days," she yawned again and she heard him sigh.

"That's too long."

"Why?" her voice was small. She absently twizzled the chord around her finger and marvelled at how soft the sheets felt under her toes.

In Grimmauld Place kitchen Sirius looked consciously over his shoulder and saw that the majority – if not all - of the Order were listening to the phone call, probably wondering if a shouting match was on the cards. "You know why," he told her, turning his back to them. "I'll be worrying," he murmured quietly.

"Don't you trust me enough to know that I'll be okay?"

"It's not about trusting you, it's about everyone else. You put yourself in danger all the time and you don't even realise you're doing it." His voice was low and quiet but kept rising louder the more he tried to make her see… make her understand.

"You can't blame me when you're exactly the same," she grumbled. "You're the one who died remember?" she rubbed her eyes and yawned again. She was so tired that words slipped out of her mouth in the same moment they rolled through her mind. She didn't know how insensitive she was being.

"Yes, well I don't have an insane werewolf after me wanting my blood and body-!" he stopped himself and she inhaled sharply, the sound crackling the receiver. "How did you know about that?"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

She sighed. "The war brings back bad memories. It's in the past, please leave it there Sirius." The gentle whispering of her stirred something inside him and all he wanted to do was hold her.

"I'm sorry," he said, staring the kettle on the counter as he tried to think of the right words to say. "It just – I'm… I'm paranoid something's going to happen. You never take a break, you're always working long shifts five days a week and exhausting yourself and you're – you've got another person growing inside you…"

"I know Sirius, _I know_," she groaned, voice thick with grogginess, "that's why I'm here. I'm taking a break, I'm having some 'me' time! You should be happy!"

"I would be if you actually have 'me' time but you're not _alone_ are you? You're with some twat – sorry – your boyfriend… beg your pardon…" She said nothing but remained in icy silence and he dropped the subject before she dropped the phone. "Okay, forget that," he rushed. "Please come home Hermione." his voice was low, pleading and slightly hopeful and she sighed again loud enough for him to hear. "It was torture last time not hearing a word for four days. Ten is..." he didn't even finish. "Look, I'm skilled with foot massages, I can cook alright…"

"You bloody liar," Remus chortled from the table behind.

Sirius pointedly ignored him. "I can work the coffee machine! Do you know how confusing that thing is?" he exclaimed defensively. The room occupants laughed, and Hermione chuckled sleepily and muttered a 'well done'. Maybe he was milking it, he didn't care. He held tighter onto the receiver. "Come home. Please."

Hermione rolled her eyes and buried her head into her pillow, hating how he was trying to persuade her, be nice to her. She wished he didn't, because it made her feel guilty for rejecting him.

"No Sirius, I want to stay here. I'll be _fine_ here." He didn't say anything but it was obvious he didn't believe her. She could imagine him now, clenching his jaw, his eyes unreadable and menacing. "Stanley will look after me."

She cut herself off abruptly, the words she was about to say totally slipping from her mind.

"Oh my… was that-?" she bolted upright and flattened her palms on her belly, the phone dropping to the bed. She stared at the bump, her eyes growing wider with every passing second until she was glowing with excitement. She snatched up the receiver and rested it against her ear. "SIRIUS! THE BABY!" The tears flowed just as she expected they would. "THE BABY JUST KICKED!"

"Wh-what? Are you sure?" his voice was higher than a six year old girl's, and Hermione shrieked with laughter and bounced up and down. "YES!" she cried. "The little thing's kicking away!" All the alcohol in the world couldn't make her as giddy as she was now.

She heard Sirius laugh, swear, roar and even _scream_ like a six year old girl at one point. It wasn't like him at all, and it was lovely to hear. "Right woman, I'm coming to get you either bloody way, but I'll tell you one more time," he growled. "Get - the fuck – home - _now!_"

She left a note for Stanley and stepped into Grimmauld Place an hour later.

* * *

><p>At the sound of the door closing Sirius ran out into the hallway and stopped dead a metre away from her. He was panting slightly, and his eyes were unnaturally bright. Hermione got the feeling that if he was in dog form his tail would be wagging. She smiled and gestured to herself.<p>

"I came."

His lips twitched and he returned the smile. "You did. Thank you."

She took a step forward, and he watched her silently as she held out her hand. "How do you do?" She didn't know how to greet him, and how much more polite could you get than a handshake? Stifled laughs broke the silence behind them. She could hear Molly telling Arthur that she had never seen a situation quite like it and Ron hissing at Ginny to shut up while sniggering uncontrollably himself.

Sirius glanced down at her outstretched hand and back up to her eyes again, his expression fathomless and unreadable. Another pause and a low throaty chuckle escaped him. "Hermione, I'm not going to shake your hand."

He looked amused – as did everyone. Stiffening she withdrew and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear. "Well that was very rude of you," she informed him.

He barked a laugh and stepped forward with his arms out wide. "Well, I have a suggestion. How about we hug? You know you can't turn down a hug." He pulled teasingly on her elbow and smirked at her obvious reluctance. "Oho, _I'm_ the rude one am I?"

She shook her head and laughed at the same time, "I'm not being rude-!" she retorted exasperatedly. He still smirked and she buttoned her lips with a little huff. "I preferred you French."

He grinned and leant in tantalisingly close to her ear and whispered. "Well I prefer you in frilly French knickers, but we can't always get what we want." Her mouth dropped and she stared up at him, her throat drying, her cheeks flushing; she was too embarrassed for words. "Now," he continued, rubbing his hands together and looking like he was thoroughly enjoying himself. "The rules of this hug are that you are not allowed to kick, elbow, pinch, punch, smack, slap, whack or hit me at all."

More laughing followed.

She bit down hard on her lip and nodded. "Okay. Are head butts allowed?" her voice was sweet and dripping with sarcasm. More laughing - particularly from Tonks, Ginny and Luna. She smiled at them and mouthed 'I'll be one minute!'

"Is he still shagging that Maria girl?" Tonks murmured in her husband's ear.

He turned to look at her with a grin and twinkle in his eye. He didn't even have to nod. "And someone else called Jessica. He was with her last night."

Tonks groaned and tutted disapprovingly as he watched the man in question pull Hermione in for a hug and then unexpectedly sweep her up off the floor, twirling her around as she squealed. "SIRIUS! Sirius! Put – me – down!" she couldn't keep a straight enough face for him to actually do it.

"You'd have thought he would've learnt the consequences of sleeping around recklessly. We don't want him to be getting every woman pregnant."

They both observed their two friends. Hermione had her hand to her mouth trying to stifle laughter as Sirius made a scene of clutching his ear and swearing rapidly. He strode up to his best mate, his chest rising and falling and pointing angrily to his ear. "She bloody bit me!" he panted, outraged.

Hermione's voice was heard from behind him, just audible above all the laughing. "You didn't say _no_ biting!"

* * *

><p>Four hours later and the night had taken a very strange turn indeed, one that, it was safe to say, <em>no one<em> could have anticipated. Ever.

Minerva and Molly who apparently turned into a pair of partners in crime when they were together - hobbled off to the kitchen arm in arm chatting away and came back fifteen minutes later, loudly demanding The Sex Pistols to be played on the record player and pulling each other to ground in stitches of laughter. Not a soul had seen either woman quite so jolly in years, let alone on the same _night_.

And then because their mother was so drunk she was off her rocker (she had kicked her shoes off and started dancing a raunchy tango with Minerva in the middle of the room), Fred and George automatically saw it perfectly okay to follow suite. They fetched shots for Harry and Ron, a bottle of whisky for Sirius, a bottle of wine for Remus, sherry for Tonks and a cocktail for Ginny and Luna (and all of the above for themselves), whilst Hermione had the great pleasure of sitting back, sipping a cup of tea and watching the crazy night unfold.

"Sexiest body has got to be Stanley," Tonks declared, holding up her sixth- something glass of brown liquid and throwing her head to the ceiling, as if settling the matter.

The girls were all sprawled on the leather sofa, lying on top of each other and drunkenly chatting amongst themselves as music blasted out from the men's side of the room. So far they had covered a great deal of topics. All were sex-related.

"Tonks!" Hermione yelped, almost choking on her cuppa. "When have you seen my boyfriend's body?" she laughed as she said it but really she genuinely wanted to know.

"I haven't but you can just tell that he's got the gorgeous abs, six pack, biceps, big cock-"

Hermione really did spit out her tea and they all broke out into throaty giggles. "_Tonks!_" The older woman just responded with an innocent: "_What?_"

"Whose cock is bigger out of Stanley's and Sirius's?" Ginny asked, peering up at her with intrigue as she sucked on her cocktail straw.

Hermione squeaked and lowered the cup of tea to the floor, knowing with these crude questions it was going to end up splashed on the floor anyway after she spat it all out. She pushed her hair out of her eyes and set them with a pointed look. "I haven't seen Stanley's, because I haven't-" she waved her hands. "You know!"

"Just say it sweetheart!" Tonks bawled, "You haven't shagged him." She downed the rest of her drink and looked at her appraisingly.

Hermione blinked in surprise, finding it hard to take her seriously.

Ginny squeezed her thigh and winked at her. "You haven't done the bed boogie."

"He hasn't entered your forbidden forest," Luna told her knowingly, always the misty, Irish voice of summary and conclusion. They all met each other's eyes for a split second before shrieking and rolling about with giggles.

"So how big is Sirius's cock in inches?" Ginny asked again, "I've always thought he would be well-endowed…" she waggled her eyebrows and Tonks immediately clapped her hands over her ears, screaming something that sounded a lot like 'Hello! He's my COUSIN!'

Hermione bit her lip sheepishly and glanced across the room at the man. He was leaning with one hand on the wall and swigging generously from his bottle as he watched Harry dancing so badly that he tripped over his own feet and landed face down on the floor. She smiled when she watched him slap his knee and throw his head high, shaking and barking with laughter.

Still chuckling he casually looked over to her, presumably wondering if she had seen Harry's classic 'banana skin' fall. She met his eyes and quickly bowed her head. Sirius crossed the room and stood in front of the sofa occupied with highly intoxicated women with Hermione squished at the end.

"Oi Ginny," he shouted over the music. "Can you budge over so I can sit next to my damsel in distress?" he indicated to the space between them.

Ginny ignored him and addressed Hermione sniggering. "I dare you to ask him how big it is! Ask him! _Ask him!_"

Hermione flatly refused.

Sirius fell to his knees and shuffled towards them, his forearms resting on the tops of Hermione's legs. Hermione eyed him suspiciously and smiled innocently at her. "What did you want to ask me love?"

She set him with a withering look before sighing. "They're asking about how big your..." she cleared her throat and steadfastly avoided his gaze. "Your…" she turned, temper rising, to Ginny. "This is ridiculous! We're supposed to be adults!" Ginny merely grinned and she huffed. "Fine, I might as well say it now. Sirius, they want to know how big your - your-" she quickly flicked her eyes down and back up again, blushing furiously. "-is."

He let out an almighty gasp, feigning taken-aback. "_Naughty girls!_" he eyed them incredulously before turning and grinning at Hermione. "Well it's been inside you, why don't you tell them?" She was too reeling to speak and he turned chuckling to the others. "Let's just say God gifted me with three legs."

* * *

><p>At twelve o'clock Ginny and Luna went to do more shots with the boys and Tonks was dragged away by Remus to the dance floor, where he had been dancing with Molly and Minerva for the past two hours. That left a sleepy Teddy tucked between Hermione and Sirius on the sofa.<p>

Sirius had now finished his bottle of whisky, and was more drunk than Hermione had ever seen him. She'd learnt that his natural drunken behaviour did not only consist of aggressiveness like that time at the pub; now he looked at her, and _stared_ at her continually.

He didn't know when to stop, but the worst was that he didn't seem to know he was even doing it. Hermione clenched her jaw as she felt his eyes flicker over her face, drop downwards and linger on her body, admiring every curve, for the third time.

"For the record," he murmured against her hair, "I regard that night we spent together as the greatest sex I've ever had."

She gasped and peeked an eye open. "_No…!_"

Sirius smirked and she let out a breathy laugh at the absurdity of it all. "I think we need to sober you up, Mr. Black. You wouldn't say such things if you hadn't have drunk so much..."

He flopped his head back against the sofa, exposing the light stubble on his jaw line and neck and let out a low, throaty chuckle. "You don't know me at all Miss Granger."

His silver eyes danced as he watched her nibble on her lip timidly, her cheeks rose from blushing. He scanned his eyes slowly down her body and back up again, shaking his head in the slightest of movements. "You don't even know do you?"

He stroked two fingers over her cheekbone, down and under her neck. The softness of her skin awed him. Tracing her throat he felt her swallow and then her endless eyes were open and on him.

"Know what?"

He was gazing at her lips, and the time seemed to slow down; when it sped up again he was kissing her, and she was kissing him right back.

Her eyes fell shut at the feel of him, at the memories that flooded back into her. It was like morning sunshine breaking through the curtains. He was slowly intertwining their fingers, groaning into her mouth as her fingers curled around the fabric of the sofa beneath them. A fiery swipe of his tongue and she realised.

Blind panic overtook her and she turned and broke away from him, pushed him back, pushed them apart.

But he came surging back.

His lips sunk down her neck, kissing and sucking and leaving her skin red and stinging as if she'd never rejected him; his breath was hot, heavy and familiar and making a cloud of mist descend over her eyes. Before she knew it his hands tattooed were kneading her breasts.

He nipped at her neck. "Your tits have got bigger haven't they? The cleavage…" she felt his large hand squeeze the underside of her breast and he breathed out shakily. "I'm jealous of our baby if they get to suck on them and I don't-" her breath caught in her throat at his crude comment, but goose bumps scattered all over her neck all the same.

"Sirius-"

"And your arse, your long smooth legs and this…" a low hiss and he slid his hand to rest on her baby bump, shaking his head dazedly. He rose up to look at her. "You're the sexiest, most gorgeous-"

She shook her head fast, pushing her hands firmly against his chest. "Stop it Sirius! You're drunk, you don't know what you're saying-!"

He was slurring his words and holding her tighter the more she pushed him away. "You turn me on more than anyone... When I'm shagging other women you are all I think about-"

"_Sirius!_"

"Auntie Mione?"

Little Teddy poked his head up, his purple hair sleep tousled. He leant against her, innocently unaware of how much he had startled both of the adults either side of him. He was so quiet they had totally forgotten he was there - or Sirius had anyway. His eyes were menacingly dark and transfixed on her, never moving away, not even once.

"Yes darling?" she answered shakily.

She stroked Teddy's hair and tried with everything she could to turn her attention on him, and to ignore _his_ hot ragged breath on her collar bone.

"Why have you got a big bump on your tummy?" he asked, examining it with fascination. "It looks like a hill! Did Uncle Sirius hurt you?"

"Yes, with his third leg," she informed the boy, pursing her lips together as she glanced at Sirius.

He let out a low throaty chuckle and kissed her temple. "Damn right," he whispered in her ear. "Me and your Auntie Mione are having a baby Teds," he told him with a grin, though he was still focussed on her, still gazing at her lips.

She had to stop this; she turned hastily away again. Teddy was tugging on her hand (the one that Sirius hadn't got a hold of), and was bobbing up and down excitedly.

"Are you going to get married?"

She was quick to reply. "No. Never."

Sirius said nothing; his mind was somewhere else altogether. His eyes were down, watching his hand slide unabashedly up her bare inner thigh. His fingers, horrifically, were nearly brushing her centre and it was now she saw his erection, straining and bulging in his pants.

Hermione's eyes flashed and she snatched onto his hand, and wrenched it away.

"_We are not doing this again!_"

He whimpered into her neck, nuzzling her softly.

"Merlin knows I want you. Don't you see 'Mione? I want you more every time I lay my fucking eyes on you." His eyes were suddenly angry, fierce, filled with drunken wildness and he pulled back to meet hers longingly; she couldn't tear away. "It's you who I wank my dick over, and it's you that makes me cum - you, fucking you. Feel how much I want you, feel how hard- how much I love-"

He gripped her hand and started to guide it to his crotch. Hermione squeaked in mortification before wrestling his arms off of her and leaping up. He was too far gone to resist her and his body slumped against the sofa, his eyes fluttered shut.

"You kill me..."

She seized Teddy under the arms and lifted him up. He was too drunk to stand, and too drunk to follow after her; people were too plastered to see that she had disappeared, and Sirius...

When she looked back over her shoulder, he had passed out on the sofa, all but dead to the world.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Sirius's announcement that God had gifted him with three legs. Hmm yes I can imagine. Sirius in general.*Promptly faints* <strong>_


	11. Fainting in a Chinese Restaurant

Chap Eleven: _**Fainting in the Toilets of a Chinese Restaurant**_

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><p>It was the first day in May that Hermione brought Stanley to meet her family – Harry, Remus, Tonks, Luna, Ron and the rest of the Weasley's. It wasn't an extravagant affair. Rather than going to the Burrow for roast dinner, Arthur was delighted to have an excuse to use a telephone and book them all a table in a muggle Chinese restaurant in China Town, near Leicester Square. Everyone – particularly the women – couldn't wait to meet Stanley. To them he was the handsome head healer at St. Mungos who had a smile that could cure any amount of dragon pox in an instant.<p>

Hermione was adamant that Sirius didn't come. He hadn't remembered anything from his drunken mutterings; not a word, and no one but Hermione knew that they had kissed. He acted exactly as he always had around her.

There was a small part of her that hated him for it.

The prospect of 'The Meeting' made Stanley nervous enough without Sirius being there. If he was there she knew he'd only make the situation awkward and embarrassing for him, probably drop one or two snide comments, challenge him to a drinking contest and make a crack at his blonde whippy hair. If not that he'd definitely point out the bum fluff on his chin.

However, Sirius was as insistent as a person could be that he was going to come, and that he was going to bring someone along. He didn't say who.

She didn't think for one second that it'd be anyone she didn't know. She didn't think he'd be stupid enough to invite… well. She thought, rather naively, that he would have brought Andromeda along, or Mundungus or a friend they all knew from the Order. But looking back on it, if he was going to bring along either of them, why didn't he just say their name instead of 'someone'? Perhaps she had told herself that even Sirius would never be that inconsiderate, so obviously out of line.

When he strolled into the restaurant an hour late holding hands with a woman so stunning that it physically _hurt_, she knew that Sirius Black held no boundaries or rules about what was wrong and right, or more accurately how much of a tactless barstard he was.

_And after all he'd said to her too..._

Some of it was candid, granted, and there was the point that he had no recollection of ever saying them... but he had said she was gorgeous.

"This is Maria everyone," he beamed, glancing sideways at the woman sweetly.

She felt like a little girl in comparison to this woman.

She was young, probably mid to late twenties, with dark auburn hair, which she had up in an elegant twist and shone beautifully in the dim lights of the room. She was tall - much taller than Hermione was, with a slender figure, a flat stomach and perfect mounds of breasts. She had a lovely smile, dark mysterious eyes and a misty voice. She had everything and, her and Sirius simply looked made for each other, their fabulous clothes, their stance, their appearance. They were from the same 'rich' world. They slotted together. There was no other way to put it.

Everyone chorused an excited, friendly '_hello!_ Come and sit down!'

She could see Fred and George exchange smirking looks at each other before resting their eyes back on the woman. Only a few people seemed to notice Hermione's agitation: Ginny was gripping her hand under the table, Luna was smiling at her as if saying 'remain calm', and Tonks was looking murderously at Sirius as Remus whispered in her ear. She knew Harry was feeling uncomfortable too. He was examining his napkin as if it was the most interesting thing he'd ever seen. Everyone else was standing up and welcoming them both.

Including Stanley.

"I'm Stanley, Hermione's boyfriend," he told them, moving around the table and holding out his hand to shake. He was a hell of a lot more confident than he was at the beginning of the evening, but that was mainly down to alcohol. It had loosened his tongue, as it had everyone's more or less.

Sirius stood taller and raised his eyebrows as he scanned him up and down, taking in the light blonde of his hair and whiteness of his teeth. It didn't take a smart person to see that Stanley wasn't what he'd expected. "I thought you'd be more bookish," he observed, slowly shaking his hand. There was a hint of defensiveness in his voice.

Stanley frowned. "Bookish?"

"Hermione…" he flicked his eyes to her. She was sitting at the table politely sipping her drink with the best poker-face he had ever seen. He could tell she was trying to pretend she wasn't listening. Sirius looked back at him and smiled. "Don't worry mate. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Stan said with an eager nod. "You're quite a regular in the papers. You know they have a whole page dedicated to you on page nine?"

"No, I wasn't aware," he replied uninterestedly. "How old are you? You look like the fresh out of Hogwarts, still living with my mum type." The men of the table had to cough to hide their laughter, hide behind their hands or chuckle into their drink glasses.

Sirius sat down next to Remus and Maria was right beside him, casting an overly friendly smile Hermione's way. He must have told her about the pregnancy thing. He had done the right thing for once. Shocking really.

Stanley sat next to Hermione and stiffened at Sirius's rude remark, though he wouldn't have thought it was rude at all. Quite the contrary. He would think he was being polite for merely getting his name right. "I'm twenty eight actually. And I've recently moved out of my parent's house," he told him icily. Ron had burned bright red from coughing.

Sirius went to chuckle but settled for a smirk. "Twenty eight? I thought you were a teenager!" he said with a laugh. "Wow, mate, sorry - it's an honest mistake."

Hermione gripped on to her chopsticks so hard her knuckles were clenching white. He should have stayed at Grimmauld, or gone anywhere where she wasn't. He had ruined their evening already and he had arrived five minutes ago.

"So where do your family live Stanley? Where is the house you just moved out of?" Molly asked as she took a large bite of a duck pancake. She was trying to keep the conversation alive, and Hermione was grateful for it.

"They live in Colchester and have done for twenty odd years. They were thinking of moving to Cornwall in their retirement, but I think mum's put dad off of the idea. The house holds too many memories. I was born in the bathroom you see," he said with a chuckle. Molly and Arthur laughed.

"Luna, can you pass me the crispy beef please?" Sirius asked, clearing his throat loudly. He turned to Maria and draped his arm around the back of her chair. "Is that all you're eating kitten?" he glanced down at her plate.

"Yes," she said, snuggling against him and biting him, rather sensually, on the ear lobe. It was highly inappropriate for a dinner table, particularly when you had just met the occupants but Sirius only grinned and kissed her in return. "I'll have some more to eat later," she told him. "If there's any left."

Maria met her eyes and Hermione burned pink and bowed her head to her very full bowl of chicken chow mein. She was wearing absolutely no make-up, felt and probably _looked_ the size of a bus in a stretchy maxi dress, and, opposite one of the most beautiful women she had ever seen, she felt like an uglier version of moaning myrtle. She felt humiliated and the urge to kick, slap and punch Sirius in was never stronger than in that moment.

"They can't wait to meet Hermione," Stanley went on. "I told them about the baby and they're as thrilled as I was. They can't wait to be grandparents! Or as good as anyway. They've already bought Hermione a pram," he told them all, smiling happily. Molly couldn't hold in her gasp, neither it seemed could Tonks. "Well it's only two months away!" he retorted at their expressions of uncomfortable shock. "We have to start getting things ready don't we love?" he placed a hand on Hermione's and kissed her temple.

Sirius abruptly stopped chewing and slowly raised his eyes to meet hers, a hard expression of barely controlled fury on his face. Hermione closed her eyes briefly and shovelled a prawn cracker in her mouth, trying to ignore his heated glare. Any other topic _but_ the baby… Stanley didn't notice the silent communication between the two of them, but Tonks did.

"So what do you do Maria?" she blurted.

Maria looked up, startled at being so randomly addressed. She relaxed and took a sip of her sparkling red wine and composed herself. "I model," she said smoothly. "For _Witch Weekly_. Sometimes clothes, but mostly lingerie. I also model for some muggle magazines as well, when I have the time."

All the Weasley boys seemed to sit higher in their seats. Hermione nearly rolled her eyes. Ginny cast her the fleetest of looks as if to say 'surprise, surprise'. Sirius was staring unblinkingly at her, so fiercely that a muscle in his jaw was flinching, and his eyes were darker than she ever remembered. She stubbornly looked away from him. She hadn't done anything wrong!

"Oh, how lovely," Molly smiled, the horrified bulge of her eyes suggesting that it was anything but.

"Witch Weekly isn't a very good magazine," Luna said, rather loudly. "Daddy says the editor is inflamed with blibbering humdingers. He is very rude exploiting the flesh of women. Daddy is going to write an article on how shockingly ghastly the magazine is." Several people stared at her, giving her the '_shush!_' eye, though she didn't seem to mind.

Maria took another sip of wine and shrugged. "Oh, I don't mind taking my clothes off in shoots. Sirius doesn't mind that other men see the pictures either." She brushed a shaggy lock out of his eyes. "My mother always said if you've got it flaunt it."

"Yes, I've seen some of your pictures. You've certainly taken on board your mother's advice," Hermione commented. Several faces turned to look at her in amazed amusement, Fred being one of them. He looked very amazed, like he wanted nothing than to kiss her heart out.

Maria did the same, overly friendly smile at her, which otherwise said that she was going to scratch her eyes out. "Well, everyone always said how pretty young Hermione Granger was. In the papers you were labelled as a heartbreaker. I can't help but be confused." She furrowed her eyebrows and glanced to Sirius, as if asking for his help on the matter. "Is there another girl with the same name?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows and started clapping in her face. "Your maturity is so very inspiring." Ginny was sniggering. "But in answer to your question, I'm Hermione Granger – the one and only, and I much prefer people to label me as the brains of the golden trio than a heartbreaker. There are many more greater things in the world than a pretty face." She shifted up out of her seat, clasping on to Stanley's hand so he could help her up. "I'm going to the bathroom. Excuse me everyone."

They watched in astonishment as she pulled Stanley in for a kiss – a rather steamy one too. It was totally unlike her. She broke away when she distinctly heard the twins wolf whistle and mutter to get a room, then she smiled at them all and sauntered off.

Once she was out of sight Sirius stood up too. "Sorry… excuse me," he kissed Maria on the temple and whispered in her ear. "It's her hormones."

He bounded towards the bathrooms and seconds later the door was swinging to a shut. Tonks and Remus looked warily at each other, knowing exactly what was occurring behind the closed doors.

Hermione was taking a moment and examining herself in the mirror when she saw Sirius's reflection come up behind her. She quickly glanced down as his strong hands slammed down on the counter either side of her, trapping her in. Nerves swarmed inside her and she spun around. "This is the women's bathroom, get out!"

"Not until you've explained to me why the fuck your little boyfriend thinks his parents are going to be grandparents! Does he think he's going to be the dad?" he grabbed her arms tightly, possessively. "How long are you planning to be with him? You've only just met him!"

"No I haven't! He's my boss, I've known him for three years!" she shouted back, trying to wriggle out of his hold. He only held her tighter.

"Oh and he's the one is he?" Sirius sneered. "Some tosser who looks about fifteen? Going to get married and have lots of sex and more babies are you?" his eyes were darker than ever, staring so deeply into hers it was like he was trying to devour her soul.

Hermione glared at him, trembling with anger. "My relationship with Stanley is none of your business! And anyway, you're the one with that – that _tart_ Maria! She's a bitch, _and_ she models _lingerie!_ Your perfect wife! Congratulations, you two are made for each other. I wish you every happiness."

Sirius clenched his jaw and growled. "Don't call Maria a tart!" he slammed the sink counter behind them again to make his point.

"Then don't call Stanley a tosser!"

She smacked him in chest. They were bickering like two six year old's.

"I told you not to come and you turn up with your girlfriend or whatever she is! Why Sirius? Why? Why do you think that would ever be a good idea? I feel-" she breathed out shakily, willing herself not to cry. "I feel humiliated!" She had tears in her eyes. "I'm seven months pregnant and she's strutting around, looking down at me like _I'm_ some sleazy tart!"

"Well you looked like one Hermione! You were _all _over your surfer boy out there!"

"Well you were all over that foul woman of yours! You heard the things she was saying to me!" she glared up at him with big, wet eyes. "You've humiliated me Sirius!"

Sirius's tight grip on her loosened and his face softened, but only for a moment. He was still angry. "And what about what you've done to me hmm?" he pointed towards the door. "What other plans has he got up his sleeve for our baby?" he shook his head as she opened her mouth. "No, if that git thinks he's going to be daddy he's got another thing coming!"

"He doesn't! He's just excited for me that's all!" she tugged on the lapels of his jacket as he bitterly bowed his head. "Sirius…"

"He's brought you a pram Hermione! A PRAM!" he threw his head back and started laughing. "He's a bloody nutcase!"

She childishly thought that that was a bit rich coming from Sirius.

"And his parents can't wait to be _grandparents_? They can fuck off! I'll tell them they can fuck off right now-"

The door banged open. Out of everyone it could have been… Hermione knew who it was before she had to look. So did Sirius.

"Oh, look who it is, the school boy's been let out for lunch break."

Stanley balled his hands into fists. "Excuse me?"

"Just get out," Sirius hissed irritably, turning back to Hermione. Stanley ignored him and surged forward towards his girlfriend.

"Are you alright darling? What's he been saying to you?"

"Oh for the love of merlin!" Sirius seethed. "Am I not allowed to have a private conversation? Hermione is FINE, alright? She doesn't need your fucking protection when she's with me! She doesn't need you at all, actually!" he gestured between himself and Hermione. "This is _OUR_ baby! Mine and Hermione's, so unless you've come up with a spell that has swapped my sperm for yours in the baby's DNA, then I'm going to have to politely ask you to _piss off_-"

"Sirius-!"

"Well, I'm her boyfriend and we have plans to move in together," Stanley remarked quickly. "So the baby would be under my roof, not yours, so I do have something to do with your child."

Sirius snapped his head to her, his eyes wide and disbelieving, like he'd just been punched hard in the gut. He shook his head slowly at her, completely astounded and annoyed and shocked. It was the last straw. It was the _last_ straw. "Moving in together? You better tell me he's lying," he warned her quietly.

"I told you we aren't moving in together!" she hissed at Stanley. He and Sirius both started shouting at one another; what, Hermione didn't know. She felt overwhelmed, suffocated, stressed. "Oh, this is ridiculous!" she snapped at them, rubbing her temples. "Be quiet, both of you! Stanley, please can you leave us? I'll be out in a minute. I promise."

His mouth dropped incredulously. "_Love!_ I'm not leaving you alone with him! I remember that picture of him in the Daily Prophet! Getting into unprovoked fights in pubs?" his eyes bulged almost comically. "He's dangerous Hermione!"

Sirius swore and hastily closed the space between him and Hermione, so he was pressed against her large baby bump and whispering into her hair. "Get him out before I knock him out," he murmured between heavy pants of suppressed anger. Hermione said nothing but look at her boyfriend, feeling increasingly sick with every passing second at the situation that was unfolding. Stanley let out a strangled yell from behind them, and made several steps towards him.

"Get away from her," he said.

Sirius twirled around, feigning shock. "Blimey are you still here?" he didn't wait for him to reply. "Just FUCK OFF!" he felt Hermione mutter his name from behind him and close her fingers around his wrist to hold him back. Then there was a thud and her hand silently slipped from his. He watched as Stanley's face went from anger to fear and Sirius turned around, his heart beating fast. "_Hermione?_"

Stanley dashed towards them, shouting her name.

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><p>It was dark when she blinked her eyes open. The early hours dim darkness. Hermione didn't know what startled her more in her half asleep phase. She was in a bed that wasn't her own, in a room that was too white to be a house and it smelt of strong chemical potions and remedies. Or the fact that someone was holding her hand.<p>

Hermione rolled over slightly, her eyes adjusting the dark. Stanley was sitting beside her bed, his eyes tired but alert. "Stanley? Where am I?" she sat up higher, looking around. "Where's Sirius?" she didn't know why, but she wanted him to be here.

"You're in St Mungos love. You fainted. Blacked out for a good five minutes. You scared all of us to death!" he smiled tiredly and squeezed her hand. "But you're okay now. That's the main thing! Sirius is upstairs having a word with Jessica at reception." He leant in closer. "The man can't keep it in his pants Hermione. He's sleeping with her as well, if you ask me. Jess has always had an infatuation with him, and well, she more or less pounced on him when he carried you in."

Hermione said nothing.

"You'll be relieved to know the baby's okay." He carried on. "I performed the spell, and Remus forced some chocolate down you as a pick me up. Why do you think you fell sweetheart?"

"I was too hot and stressed," she mumbled.

"Too damn right you were," a deep voice cut in, and she snapped her head towards the doors to see Sirius, standing there on the shiny floors of the dim hospital wing, wearing the same black shirt, waistcoat and leather jacket he was wearing at the restaurant. She felt her lips smile. "Jess wants to see you Stan," he told him. "Says you gotta go now. By the way, I slept with her once and I'm not going there again."

He didn't want to start up another argument again when Hermione was resting, so he finally nodded and left. When he was well gone, and they were alone Sirius moved closer, moving into the light. "I brought you a tea," he said through the silence. He held up a steaming cup and set it down on the cabinet beside her. He stood for a minute, quietly observing her fragile state, before sitting in the chair Stanley had vacated.

"How are you feeling?"

She settled her head into a comfortable position on the pillow, so she could look at him without moving her neck. "Tired, but fine thank you."

"You scared the shit out of me," he said. He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, lost in contemplation. Then he smiled. "Knock, knock."

Her lips twitched in irritation and amusement and she shook her head. Somehow she realised that she was going to have to go along with it because he wasn't going to drop it. "Who's there?"

"You know."

Yes she did bloody know. He poked her in the shoulder when she remained silent. "You know," he said again.

She rolled her eyes and leant back against the head board. "You know who?" she parroted.

"What are you talking about love? He's dead."

He was chuckling as he said it, and she wanted to strangle herself when she shook with lazy laughter. She didn't _want_ to laugh. It wasn't funny, it was just… annoying… but then she was still laughing. So clearly, she didn't find it that annoying.

The chair scraped forward and he was coming closer, searching blindly for something. Turns out it was her hand, and he took it and she intertwined their fingers without a second's thought. "I'm sorry about what Maria said," he murmured.

She tried a half-hearted shrug. "It's okay, I didn't care."

"You did. You just put up that wall of defensiveness." His eyes flicked to hers when she remained silent with a frown on her face. "I know when you're doing it. You've always done it," he explained. "You do it when someone calls you a swot. You did it when Malfoy called you a mud blood. You do it with me sometimes when we're arguing. I've never understood why." He was quiet for a long moment. "I've never been able to read you."

"Sometimes it's easier to act like you don't care, even if inside you're hurting," she said simply. He stared at her, like he was fascinated, for _minutes_. It got to the point where it became uncomfortable. He moved his elbows to rest on her bed, his face shadowy in the moonlight.

"I don't want you to hurt. I want to protect you, in any way I can."

She shook her head sleepily. "It's gone away now," she muttered, so quietly he barely heard it. She closed her eyes and brought their conjoined hands up and over her bump, before coming to rest on her breasts, above her heart. "I'm okay."

He brushed a finger down her cheekbone and neck, watching with parted lips as she drifted slowly back to sleep, holding on to his hand like it was her only comfort. "We're going to be parents soon," he said with a smile, and a kiss to her forehead. She hummed, the same sound she did on the sofa all those weeks ago. He felt his heart tighten… something he didn't think he could feel.

"So beautiful," he whispered, more to himself. "You're so, so beautiful Hermione." He smoothed her hair back with his free hand, marvelling at how soft it felt beneath his fingers, how silky but wayward her curls were at the same time. The smallest of smiles played on her lips. He sunk his head down beneath hers, grinning when he remembered that she hadn't needed the tea in the end.

Sirius was gone when she woke up the next morning. And Hermione, just like Sirius's drunken confessions- didn't remember a thing from the hours before.

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><p><em><strong>Last update before my exams! I'm meant to be revising British Politics but I'm doing this! GIVE ME SOME LOOOVIN. That deserves some lovin. <strong>__**I have nothing else to say really, except that I'm craving cheese toastie and it's 4:36am in the morning. But I do think you should leave a review yes yes? PS a few of you have said that this isn't Sirius/Hermione fic, my response: just you bloody wait ;)**_


	12. Running in the Pouring Rain

Chap Twelve: _**Running in the Pouring Rain**_

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><p>A red faced red head peered around the bathroom door, shouting loudly over the noise of the shower.<p>

"Hermione, Sirius is here! He's waiting for you in the hallway…Hurry up!"

Hermione flicked open the cap of the conditioner bottle. She was currently in the process of washing her hair and upon hearing Ginny; she did a double take and poked her head around the shower curtain. "What? He's early! He's not meant to be here until two o'clock-!" Her incredulous spluttering was almost comical.

Ginny's eyes drifted up to her hair - foaming with shampoo and piling on top of her head like a snow hat. "Well, he's obviously eager to see you then isn't he?" she grinned, the same twinkle in her eye she always seemed to have when talking to her friend about matters of a certain dark haired, ruggedly handsome marauder.

"After our last meeting?" she remarked, "Oh yes I bet he's delighted."

Ginny burst out laughing.

She had heard _all about_ the raging row the two of them had had four days previously, all a minor incident of course… Sirius had found out from Harry that Hermione had been accompanied by Stanley on several shopping trips buying _baby things_. He came storming round to the flat like the gates of hell were hot on his heels, alerting many of the Diagon Alley shoppers; he was shaking, damn near crying and banging on the door with the intention to knock it down…- Hermione had to heal his knuckles when he slammed his fist against the wall and _broke_ the bone. Their family and many others heard his reaction to Stanley's pram-buying 'meddling' very clearly at the Chinese restaurant toilets, and so Hermione was expecting his anger… – but he was angrier than she had ever seen him. He was uncontrollable. He calmed down slightly once she told him he could come with her from now on.

They were getting the tube into muggle London that day.

"C'mon Hermione-! You don't want to keep Sirius waiting now!"

"I haven't finished shaving yet!" Hermione shrilled back, then bit her tongue, immediately regretting it.

Ginny seemed to sense her thoughts and threw her an amused 'Sirius' wink before shutting the door.

She didn't want to rush out. Why should she? It was him who had arrived too early. Nonetheless, she felt herself rushing anyway. There was always an inkling in the back of her mind that he was just the other side of the door, probably leaning against the wall wearing that leather jacket of his. Even through the door she could smell his aftershave. How was it even possible that he was annoying her already?

Stepping slowly and carefully out of the shower, she emerged from the bathroom ten minutes later wrapped in a small towel with soaking wet hair, slick wet skin, and a bleeding leg.

Sirius and Ginny were talking by the doorway and both looked up at her appearance. Their conversation trailed to silence. One once over and Ginny was desperately biting back a fit of laughter and Sirius… Sirius stood very still - staring at her. She noticed his mouth was hanging slightly open, and his eyes were just the same – just as dark, as fathomless and as unreadable as ever.

She bowed her head, feeling her cheeks warm.

"I cut myself shaving," she explained, with the last trickle of dignity she had.

Ginny was shaking with giggles, and half leaning against the wall for support. Sirius was tensed, staring at her with such intensity it was unnerving; the corners of his lips threatened to twitch with amusement, but then he turned away uninterestedly, examining the photographs on the wall. She quickly glanced down at herself and swallowed hard, realising that she was still in a very skimpy towel and with a little squeak, she dashed to her bedroom to change sharpish, her flatmate sniggers following her out.

"Okay I'm ready!" she called minutes later.

She re-emerged, wearing a summery maxi dress that stretched nicely over her round bump and a pair of her mother's old retro sunglasses perched on top of her head. Her hair was still damp from the shower and falling in shining curls down her back and, unlike Ginny, she didn't bother with the make-up. There was no point anyway; she was hopeless with cosmetics… Ginny had grown up in a poor wizarding family and cherished her mornings in front of the mirror applying lip gloss, blush, bronze, eyeliner and mascara. Hermione simply wasn't interested.

She slipped her pumps on and reached up to the hook for her bag. "We'll try and be back for your Quidditch match tonight Gin," she told her, "I know how important it is for you, being the last match of the season…"

She hooked her bag over her shoulder but was stopped by Sirius, who swiftly slipped it off of her and swung it easily around his own. She and Ginny exchanged looks of surprise.

"_What a gentlemen_," she mouthed, and Hermione pursed her lips to stop a giggle escaping. Her friend spoke up again, addressing both of them. "You will be back. It starts at six so, four hours is more than enough time to shop and get home again," she glanced at them, one from the other, "Try not to have too much fun alright? I know it's going to be difficult."

Hermione sent her friend a scathing look and muttered an _"ignore her"_ to Sirius, who chuckled and placed his hands on her shoulders and guided her to the door, finally making their leave.

Sirius flicked the latch and opened the door for Hermione and followed out after her. Ginny watched them walk down the steps and ascend into Diagon Alley, their retreating backs blending in with the crowd of shoppers. Squinting, she saw him drop his hand out of his pocket and reach for hers, then stuff it back into his pocket again, thinking better of it. Ginny smiled. It was funny seeing them walk so apart, so separately from one another, like they'd rather be anywhere else than together. Maybe someday soon they would both realise that they held some kind of affection for one another, however small and meek it may be.

The pair of them barely spoke walking to the station, nor did they speak on the whole of the train journey. They were sitting across from one another and seemed to look everywhere but at each other. It wasn't like they were still in the 'Stanley' argument. They weren't really – it was just that neither of them knew what to say because there was _nothing_ to say. They didn't have that relationship where you could talk for five minutes about the weather, or what they had been up to at the weekend. Small talk was non-existent with them. They didn't – couldn't – talk about simple things; being in each other's company was always, as strange as it sounds, intense and exhausting.

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><p>"Eighty five pounds," Hermione said, squinting at the price then examining the box. They had finally arrived at the supermarket in Oxford Street. "Is that good value for a baby monitor? I really don't know," she sighed and looked at the other boxes, comparing the prices. "I should have asked Tonks how much she paid for hers…"<p>

"Full colour video monitor with sensor pad and FHSS sensor technology, a safer digital technology than any other monitor, clean and contemporary styling, simply intuitive to use, voted 2001's no.1 monitor for parents in the UK," Sirius read loudly, making Hermione's head snap to him. He was holding a white and black shiny box in his hands, which contrasted hugely with the plain tatty box Hermione was holding. "So, on this one you can basically see the baby sleeping. The monitor has a screen on it… merlin these muggles are getting technical…" he murmured with impressed, raised eyebrows, still looking at the box.

"It's funny you haven't mentioned the price," Hermione quietly commented. "How much is it?"

For the first time, Sirius looked up at her and met her eyes without being in the company of someone else. She looked back at him, her face a perfect expression of innocent inquiry. He watched her for a moment longer, smirking, and then bowed his head to the box so he could keep his grin down. "Er – it doesn't say the price… unfortunately."

He quickly placed it into the shopping basket on top of the cot bedding and, before she could say another word, he had picked up the basket and swung it around his shoulder and placed a hand on her back to move her along the aisle. "Where to next? Cuddly toys?"

Hermione was having none of it. His lack of concern annoyed her, and she marched back over to where he had stood and examined the shelf where the boxes were. When she saw how much it was, she spun around with an incredulous gasp.

"Sirius! It's _two hundred pounds!"_

"I've got more money than the Malfoy's put together love," he said with a shrug so casual it made her want to kick him in the shin.

"You're ridiculous," was all she could manage. She moved along the aisle, her body language of crossed arms and clenched jaw showing one of a pissed off woman and ticking bomb.

He watched her move away and sighed heavily. "Hermione, calm down."

She turned. "Stop telling me to calm down! _Two hundred pounds _Sirius! How insane are you?"

He grinned lopsidedly. "Not insane love," he pointed out. "Just very rich."

She shot an unamused look at him. "Why do we need to buy the most expensive one in the shop when there's plenty of others there that are cheaper and better value for money?" she shook her head and tried to ignore the way his lips were twitching with amusement. "Oh, you're doing this to annoy me aren't you? I know you are." He pretended he didn't hear her and she shook her head, surprisingly amused by him. "We're not getting it," she asserted again.

"Yes we are."

She sighed exasperatedly. Dealing with Sirius was like dealing with a toddler. "We-"

"Are," he nodded.

"No- we aren't!"

He said nothing but grin wider, and she lightly smacked him on the chest, trying to bite back a smile of her own. She didn't find a person more irritating or annoying than him. She really didn't, and the point was proven when she saw him out of the corner of her eye, chuckling with that godforsaken cat-got-the-cream grin. "Stop _laughing_ Sirius! Goodness, you're so immature! And arrogant," she added as an afterthought.

Chortling, he whispered in her ear. "You forgot rich."

She turned and smacked him once more for good measure.

They went in several more shops after that before they started the long and tiring journey home carrying their shopping bags (which Sirius insisted that he held). Halfway through their walk to the station it started to pour with rain. Drops of water were splashing on the cobbled pavements of Oxford Street and soaking everyone as they rummaged through their handbags for umbrellas, or ran for shelter in shops; Sirius and Hermione watched as a group of young girls wearing summer dresses and gladiator sandals groaned and screamed to one another as the rain plummeted down on their straight, perfect hair and soaked it in seconds. People just weren't expecting a storm in the middle of June, but then again, you could never expect English weather to say beautifully sunny for too long.

Squinting out over the wet street of people running havoc, Sirius had to shout over the noise of the rain.

"HERMIONE! WE HAVE TO RUN!"

"WHAT?" The rain was hammering so hard that she couldn't even hear his shouts.

He held up the bags high over his head, acting as a shield. The two of them were quickly becoming drenched. He leant in close to her ear. "WE – HAVE – TO – _RUN!_"

She pushed her dripping hair out of her eyes and hurriedly nodded, "OKAY!"

He shifted all the bags on to one hand and held out the other to her. "HOLD MY HAND!"

Raising her eyes to meet his, she took it and together they started running up the road, Sirius pulling her along as people barged past them, also hurrying for shelter in shops or cars. They couldn't avoid puddles; instead they trampled through them, the water splashing everywhere and making people even more soaked. Sirius didn't care. "MIND OUT!" he roared at people, "MY WIFE IS PREGNANT! _OI!_"

On the receiving end of a very frightening Sirius, a middle aged man stumbled back on his heel and slipped over, landing on his bottom in a puddle that was ankle deep. He was practically pounded to the floor with rain. Sirius didn't stop to apologise, but Hermione shouted a _'I'm so sorry!'_ over her shoulder and started laughing straight after. She didn't know why. It was hardly the appropriate time to fall in a laughing fit, but that's what she had done. Passers-by were shooting them both odd looks, and she could faintly hear Sirius's barking laughter through the noise of the thunder and lightning.

They finally made into Oxford Circus station, looking like they had both fallen into a swimming pool – though they weren't the only ones. Only a few had had umbrellas and looked a bit dampish, but everyone else was cursing the weather under their breaths as they examined their clothes sticking to their bodies, dripping hair and squelching shoes.

Sirius turned around. He was panting but had an almighty grin on his face. "Fuck! Typical June weather…"

She had nothing to say so she laughed some more, and he chuckled and led her onto the escalators, joining the end of a vast queue of people. She stood in front of him, though they were both standing on the same step. Her hand was still tucked within his in the toasty warm pocket of his leather jacket, whilst his other arm was curled round her waist, his hand resting on her very large baby bump with his fingers stretched out. She leant back on him as the escalator took them down to the station platform. The rain had brought out the sweet smell of her shampoo and the kicking spice of his aftershave.

"So when did we get married?" she inquired, pursing her lips with an innocent curiosity. He laughed quietly, squeezing her hand.

"I'll let you know."

Her eyebrows shot up and she almost toppled over.

* * *

><p>They didn't make it back in time for Ginny's Quidditch match. Every train carriage on the tube was crammed with people coming home from work, shopping, or club goers going out to different parts of London, and it wasn't until eight o'clock they fell through the door of Grimmauld Place, completely shattered. Being pregnant, Hermione couldn't apparate, so they both had to walk back. The house was empty, the hallway and rooms dark and shadowy.<p>

"Everyone's at the match," Sirius said through the silence.

They both knew that no one would be back for a while. The thought was unnerving. Hermione tried not to watch him peel off his jacket and hang it up on the hook; she knew it would only make things more awkward if she did.

"Er…" he cleared his throat, and she realised he was nervous too. "Would you like a drink?"

She was fiddling with the tie of her dress. She looked up, feeling embarrassed for no apparent reason and nodded. "A cup of tea would be lovely."

"Two sugars isn't it?"

Her mouth dried out, and all she could do was nod. _He remembered._

He strolled off to the kitchen, gesturing to her to 'make herself at home' in the drawing room. She could have hexed him. The drawing room. The drawing room? She knew he knew what she was thinking, and the atmosphere became almost unbearable when he came back holding two steaming cups of tea. The whole thing was like a replay.

He handed her the tea, waving a submissive hand at her thanks and fell back on the sofa. _The same sofa_. He was looking at her with raised eyebrows as if wondering why she was still standing. Her heart nearly stopped. He knew exactly why. She wanted to scream at him that _this_ was the sofa, this was the sofa they had made love on all those months ago, and if they sat on it now – together – alone - it would be too much. Just too much. Did he have any fucking idea what he was doing?

She didn't answer the question, because she sat down. The sofa dipped.

…And they didn't speak. The whole thing was just a long agonising silence. The only sound was the unnaturally loud tick of the grandfather clock hanging on the wall, and the occasional running water from next door. Hermione was nibbling on her lip, counting places where she'd rather be in her head. Sirius was staring at his cup of untouched tea, his silver eyes glazed over in thought.

"How's Stanley?" he asked.

Hermione looked up, saw him gazing at the floor and quickly looked back down again. "He's good." She had gone back to fiddling with her tie again. "How's Maria?"

It was his turn to look up, though it was slower. He smiled to one side of his mouth. "Good."

She smiled back, nodding, and he watched her intently before glancing back down again.

"Do you think that things would have been different?" he said suddenly.

She felt her heart race, but she kept her eyes down, her voice the same. "Different how?"

"Us. If you'd have stayed in my bed..." There was a pause, and Hermione had to put down her tea. Her hands were trembling too much. "Do you think we could have made it, you and me?"

Her eyes drifted to his, and she couldn't pretend like she hadn't thought about it. It hurt thinking about it. She saw he was hurting too. The pain that mirrored his face when he had nightmares about Azkaban was seeping into his gorgeous features now. It was discreet, but she knew that look. Her voice was a whisper.

"I don't know."

His throat pulsed as he swallowed, digesting her words, and he was speaking quietly again. "Is there a chance that we'll ever be together?"

"We're too different Sirius..." she had to try and channel her voice, try and make herself sound like she wasn't about to cry. "I told you that night."

"And yet we had sex where we are right now."

His eyes were moist; he looked just as upset as she felt. Before she could respond the door flung open, and the family and everyone piled in, cheering and chanting and talking in loud voices about the match, unbeknownst that they had just interrupted a moment so intense it was difficult to imagine just how much…

Hermione leapt up and went out to greet them, becoming caught up in so many conversations that thoughts of _their _conversation drifted away. They didn't speak to each other for the rest of the night. She didn't even come and say goodbye to him when she left with Ginny sometime after eleven, and he quickly turned his attentions to the bottle of fire whiskey on the shelf and flooed Maria.

* * *

><p>"Sirius… Sirius…"<p>

It was early-hours dark when he peeked one eye open. Someone was nipping at his neck, trying to wake him up. Their teeth was grazing down his skin, their tongue was swirling circles around his ear and down, kissing and kissing him until he was groaning and rolling over. He was mumbling incoherently that he wasn't a morning person, but they didn't stop. He rubbed at his sleepy eyes, and the scene before him blinked into focus.

Maria.

She was lying on her back on his bed; her auburn hair shone from the sunshine flooding in from the window and her dark, mysterious eyes were set on him with a gaze that oozed sweet something's and hot sex. Her back was arched, with the sheets teasingly falling just below her breasts so her erect nipples were on show and calling out to him, begging to be sucked. He raised his eyebrows and slowly pushed back the rest of the covers, feeling his cock twitch to attention when he saw that she was completely naked and already dripping for him. Her hand snaked through the bed sheets to vigorously grab him by the waistband and pull him on top of her.

"That's one way to wake me up," he murmured, and she giggled and brought her lips to his.

His big hands rubbed all over her, cupping and squeezing buoyant breasts, and smirking as she hummed in delight and bucked her hips. Then she was ripping down his boxers and taking him in her mouth – all of him – those pouty lips of hers sucking up and down his cock, her wet tongue massaging him from his tip to his testicles as her hand tossed him off; he swore and hung his head to the ceiling, his eyes closed. He couldn't stop the animal inside him grab her hair and push her forwards, so his tip was at the back of her throat and he was completely enveloped in the hotness of her mouth. And then he was throwing her back, spreading her legs and thrusting into her as she writhed and moaned beneath him; her nails clawed at his chest, and he grinned at the pain and fucked her harder, his eyes falling shut.

His stamina was unbelievable. He went on, and on, and on, driving her up and pinning her down and filling her with that rush of ecstasy that only came with being fucked and fucked hard. She could taste it on the tip of her tongue, feel it ripple through her body… her release. She came once… twice… _three_ times… screaming his name at the top of her lungs until her voice cracked, and she was nothing but a sweaty mess beneath him. He followed suite, his eyes ever closed and head hung to the ceiling, biting back a bellow of his own as he emptied himself.

"Hermione," he whispered, eyes closed, then tensing.

"Oh Sirius…" Maria breathed, awe-stricken.

She hadn't even noticed. She sounded as satisfied as a woman could be. He relaxed in relief and collapsed beside her and she encircled her body around him, her head burying into his neck, their legs intertwining. They settled down, their heavy pants subsiding - and she closed her eyes and drifted off into a blissful sleep, at peace with the world, trouble less, happy.

"That was amazing," she whispered.

He stared at the ceiling, his eyes a bitter blackness. "Yeah."

All he could think about was the girl whose name he let slip.

"_You called me Mr Black." _

"_I try to maintain my manners in situations of crisis," she spoke solemnly, and his lips twitched into a smile, not doubting that she was telling the truth. That's how she was. She bit back a smile and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear. It was a shy gesture. "You said I was the brightest witch of my age." _

"_I did," he said, grinning in reminiscence. "And I was right wasn't I? I should have been a fucking seer, I would've given Trelawney a run for her money." _

_He sent her a wink and they both shook with laughter; his an infectious bark, hers misty and throaty. They lapsed into silence seconds later, smiling at each other before glancing down at their cups of tea and chinking them together. It was a silent toast to their survival, life, family and each other. _

_She put her tea on her lap and raised her eyes to his. "I thought of you when Bellatrix was torturing me you know." _

_He drew back in surprise, his eyes flickering over her face as if questioning her sanity. "Of me?" she nodded and he almost laughed. "Merlin woman you could of _died!_ You could have thought of anyone - Harry, Ron, your mum and dad but – me? You hated me!" _

"_What? That's not true," she admonished with an amused tut, "You're the bravest person I have ever known." _

_Suddenly she tingled with warmth. She was sure it had something to do with the man next to her. He quirked his eyebrow and draped an arm around the back of the sofa, around her. His fingers were drawing circles on her shoulder, and she liked it. "Now what makes you say that?"_

"_How long have we got?" she asked, mockingly getting up to check the grandfather clock. He held her down, not smiling, not laughing, completely serious. Ironically. _

"_We have forever." _

_She stared at him, at his lips, feeling an overwhelming sense of something that she couldn't quite describe fill her up, and slowly, she lowered her head to rest in the crook of his neck, her eyes drifting off somewhere into the distance. They didn't know when the night had turned so reflective, but it had. _

"_I remember when Harry and I came to save you on Buckbeak. It was an early summer evening in June and the sun was setting in the sky. Dumbledore had told us that we could save more than one innocent life… you and Buckbeak. It seemed like such a difficult, impossible task for two thirteen year olds, but we had to try. I had to try… We saved Buckbeak and flew up to the balcony on the top floor… You were locked in a room in Flitwick's office, and when I got there, I ran and saw you and I…" she simply shook her head. "Ever since then I knew I would never forget it, never forget you, and I haven't…" _

_Though her eyes were shining with tears, she didn't look sad. She looked inspired. Moved. _

"_You were standing by the furthest window, looking up to the sky with the faintest of smiles on your face, like you were watching the sun set, or listening to the birds singing for the last time. I think you were remembering the good times when you were at Hogwarts… with James and – and Remus and you were h-happy… and watching you in that moment, I remember thinking: your family turned their back on you… your own mum – your own dad… your own flesh and blood. Parents aren't supposed to do that! They are meant to protect their children, love them more than life itself, but they chose to leave you… abandon you… James and Lily didn't have the chance to watch their son grow up, but yours did! You had no family – the family you had - the real family, your real brother James was taken from you! And then-" _

_She was crying. _

"_And then you were taken to Azkaban and thrown in a cell for … twelve years … _twelve years!_ … you grew up, the years passed by behind stone walls and the world forgot about you… you escaped, you found Harry, had the chance to have a proper family, and then you were locked up again. You were going to have your soul sucked out of you…every happy memory – lost forever …" _

_He pulled her forcefully onto his lap, holding and cuddling her so tightly he was scared he was hurting her, but she wasn't hurt. Quite the contrary. She broke away from his embrace and gazed at him, stroking his cheek. _

"_And the man I saw knew he was going to die, and had accepted his fate because he knew his pain would end. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. The world had wronged you Sirius… and you – you looked up at the sky and smiled." _

Sirius swallowed back the weight of a heavy heart. Next to him, Maria was lightly snoring but he couldn't sleep. Not now. Fucking _Hermione_. He hated so much about her. He hated her throaty laugh, the crinkle on her nose when she was confused, the way her eyebrows furrowed when she was passionate about something... he hated her love for books, how she was so good and all about following the rules... he hated how she would rifle through notes at Order meetings, and how she played footsie under the table with Fred... he hated how fucking childish she was, and yet it was always her that accused him of being the childish one... And another thing he hated: according to her, they were so different that there was no chance they'd be together. He hated her for saying that. He hated her for everything.

He didn't know he was crying until he rubbed a hand down his face and felt the dampness of tears.

He hated the way she made him feel so much more.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lovehate ay... If you hadn't guessed, the flashback scene at the end is from the night on Halloween! I hope you all caught on to that. Also, this is story is published on Granger Enchanted now, - I'm thrilled, sailing the ship for Sirius/Hermione on websites like that is just amazing. Check it out! **_


	13. Furry Little Problems

Chapter Thirteen: _**Furry Little Problems**__**  
><strong>_

* * *

><p>"I've just been getting pains, that's all - shoots of pain," Hermione said to Tonks, who nodded and squeezed her hand comfortingly. They were sitting at the table of Grimmauld Place, talking in quiet voices as they waited for the Order meeting to start.<p>

"What does Stanley say? You have told him right?"

She nodded and half shrugged. "He says that pains are perfectly normal at this late stage. It's just a sign that baby will want to come out soon. In the meanwhile, more rest and more healthy food is needed…-Doctor talk in other words," she said with a smile. "No, Stan's lovely really, he couldn't be better to me."

"Have you -? You know?"

Hermione glanced around her with a look of scandal on her tanned face, hoping nobody heard. Nobody had – but out of the corner of her eye she noticed Sirius standing in the corner of the room with Harry. He looked different. The second she looked at him, he looked back at her. Flushing slightly, she turned back to Tonks.

"No I haven't!" she stage whispered, "Ginny's been asking me that too! I'm a ticking time bomb as it is and if he stuck _that_ in me there is no question I would burst-!"

Tonks spat out her tea, the sprays flying onto the kitchen table. Across the table, having narrowly missed the spray of spit, Remus shot her a look of disgust and the two women both doubled over with laughter.

"That big ay?" Hermione spluttered incredulously and Tonks grinned and patted her hand. "Well it's not long now, a few weeks the baby will be here and you'll be shagging like rabbits. To be fair to him, he's been a very patient man," Tonks said wickedly, and Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth in shock before laughing out loud.

She clasped her cup of tea in her hand and leant forward, eyes bright and shining from laughing heartily with a friend. "Did you know the little thing wakes me up every night kicking?"

Tonks raised her eyebrows in alarm. "Are we talking about the baby or Stanley's…-?" she couldn't finish the sentence, they were giggling so hard the other order members had started to look over them. Fred and George had gradually started to shift their chairs closer so they could catch what they were laughing at, but they didn't get the chance. Arthur hurried in through the door.

"I have some news from the ministry," he announced, taking up his place at the bottom of the table.

Hermione quickly moved back to her seat, catching Sirius's eyes again as she did so. She felt her lips part. He'd had his hair cut, and he looked younger. Arthur cleared his throat, and she faced the front. It was strangely quiet as he ruffled a pile of ministry documents in his hands and looked up, surveying his family and friends of the Order. He wasn't his usual jolly self; there was a grave expression on his face that could only mean one thing: something bad had happened. "This may come as a bit of a shock but-… well…"

The Order members, who were chattering and laughing only a minute before all seemed to sit up straight and hold their breath. Ron looked worried and Harry tense but determined. Hermione sat in the middle of them, nibbling her lip in worry and clasping the hands of her best friends. Their conjoined hands rested against the table.

"It appears a certain someone has fallen severely ill. We are well aware of this man. The illness he has is in fact unknown as of now, as it is related to lycantrophy, and each werewolf is different depending on how much human blood they consume…" Remus visibly paled, as it always did when on the subject of werewolves. Arthur bowed his head, almost remorsefully. "Fenrir Greyback is currently being hospitalised at St. Mungos."

There were shocked gasps. The twins half rose from there chair in protest, their fists clenched, jaws clenched, exchanging furious looks of anger at each other. Hermione thought they were over-reacting; he wasn't the first death eater – former death eater – to be a patient there. The hospital, like all places, no longer rejected them. New laws had been passed under the new minister of magic and dear friend Kingsley Shacklebolt that allowed reformed death eaters into all public establishments. Though it did seem barbaric at first, Kingsley insisted as part of the idea that in order to move on from the War and the discrimination amongst muggle borns, everyone was entitled to equality… which meant death eaters too.

Arthur sighed. "That's not all. Greyback has also asked the ministry for Hermione to tend to him and no one else. He gave the ministry galleons, and they accepted."

The gasps were louder. This time they couldn't go ignored.

Ron was immediately on his feet. "Is Kingsley out of his mind?"

"_Ron!_" Molly and Hermione gasped in unison.

"NO HERMIONE-! THIS IS – THIS CAN'T BE-!" he raged, yelling and not caring. "HOW HAS THIS BEEN ALLOWED? HOW? WHY?" His face flushed red with fury but no one was looking at Ron; everyone was staring at Arthur, as if thinking the exact same thing.

"He's valuable. We get Greyback, we get every single other death eater out there and lock them up for the foreseeable future. He's bargaining with us, you see. Hermione looks after him, we get the others in Azkaban." He warily looked round the table of shocked faces. No one seemed convinced - and with good reason, after what he attempted to do to Hermione in the war. "Kingsley is well aware of what happened at Malfoy Manor but he believes this is the best way. Greyback won't be able to harm you Hermione, not with all the people around you, and especially not in his state. He really is weak."

"How do you know?" Ron demanded.

"We've been sent a report by Healer Herbert-"

"Stanley?" Harry asked, glancing enquiringly at Hermione and back again.

"Stanley ran a full check up on him at the hospital," Arthur nodded. "The results were baffling - they show that Greyback's body is trying to transform into a full werewolf every twenty four hours. Obviously this will mean he is not only a danger to himself, but everyone in the building and elsewhere; to stop the transformations happening, Stanley has prescribed him to dosage of Wolfsbane daily. He won't be able to leave his bed because of the impact the potion will have on his body," he took a deep breath and shook his head, "I'm afraid, being hospitalised is the only way."

"Wolfsbane dosage every twenty four hours?" Remus asked hoarsely, his voice noticeably higher. "That can't be possible, he'll weaken to the point of death after the second day!" he cried. Remus took Wolfsbane once a month on the eve before the full moon, and witnessing the heavy bags under his eyes and the yellow tinge of his skin the morning after, one could only imagine how exhausting one dosage was.

"The Healers think this constant transform condition has something to do with the amount of human blood he has consumed. The more human blood he intakes as a werewolf, the more 'wolfish' he becomes, and so the more his body wants to transform. At the moment, a strong Wolfsbane potion every day is the only answer."

It was common news that it was Greyback's lifetime ambition to bite as many people as he could – preferably children "get them young" he said - and turn them to lycantrophy and overthrow the human population. Victims of the monster himself, Remus and Bill, exchanged looks but said nothing.

"Did Stanley tell you he had run a check on Greyback Herms?" Ginny asked her. Hermione met her friend's eyes and shook her head.

"Whether Greyback is weak or not, this can't be allowed Arthur surely!" Molly said to her husband, trying to make him see reason. "Everyone knows he is a death eater, was a death eater… he's already killed hundreds - maybe _thousands_ of people! How on earth could Kingsley even consider this?"

"And it's totally out of the blue!" George threw in, "The hairy git's been lying low for ages!"

"Probably planning this," Fred hissed, firing up, "Merlin if I could kill one person, it'd be him…"

Arthur sighed heavily and turned to face Hermione. Her mouth was shut tight and she was staring at the wall opposite. It was hard to imagine that she was laughing hysterically minutes before. He spoke softly, as if trying to ease the shock, the pain.

"After the baby is born you will get two week's rest and time to get used to things. Then, you must go back to work and be Greyback's healer. Kingsley said it's for the best." She looked blank. The news was sinking in, and he shook his head apologetically. "I'm sorry about this love, I tried to talk Kingsley out of it."

Hermione looked up quickly, like she had just remembered that someone was speaking to her and it was polite to reply. She sent him a ghost of a smile. "It's fine Arthur really." She sounded surprisingly calm considering, squeezing Harry and Ron's hands with her own. "If it'll help catch the other death eaters then of course I'll do it."

It was a while before anyone spoke.

They simply stood or sat tensely looking at Hermione, unsure of what to say. Were there more positives than negative outcomes? They would be able to get every other death eater and lock them up for good – that was a positive. Harry and Ron met the eyes of the others in the room – all thinking the same thing. They knew what the negative was. Greyback didn't actually succeed getting what he wanted from her last time after all.

"She's not doing it."

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room that seemed to drag on and on. Everyone looked towards the source of the voice. Sirius was sitting at the head of the table, leaning forward with his hands clasped together, his lips set in a straight line, his grey eyes staring down at his hands, an unreadable but hard expression on his face. It was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

Hermione was half staring, half glaring at him. She was expecting him to say something, but not that. He sounded like a controlling father. If Sirius knew she was irritated beyond belief at him he didn't show it or acknowledge her. Flushed pink and very pissed off, she turned, hair tossing to Arthur whom nodded curtly in silent indication that he would deal it.

"In all respects Sirius, this isn't exactly your decision."

Sirius grinned to the side of his mouth before glancing up at him. "I thought you'd say that."

"It's true Sirius!" Hermione exclaimed.

He didn't look at her - his eyes didn't even skim over her direction, but he had certainly heard what she said. The grin slipped from his mouth as quick as it had come. "Not my decision is it?" he growled, though he was addressing Arthur. He stood up so fast his chair toppled over. "We're having a baby together man!"

Arthur bristled, something very unlike him. "I am fully aware-"

"No don't think you are mate!" he spat. "It's due in the next few weeks! She's more vulnerable now than ever and it's my responsibility to protect her!"

Hermione watched the two men argue, standing at opposite ends of the table. They usually got on well. But that was the thing… Sirius could switch. In ten seconds he could go from barking with laughter to throwing chairs aside in rage. She had become used to it over the years; she wasn't afraid to argue with him and argue with him often. They argued for hours… Something she _wasn't_ used to was being ignored by him. She hated it. His razor sharp tongue was quick in rows. The two of them always rose to each other's bait, teasing each other, luring at each other… this time he didn't. He straight out ignored her, and she couldn't feel worse.

"I _know_ that Sirius. And she will be protected – more than you realise… By the ministry, by each and every one of us. You must understand that nothing will happen to her-"

He knocked his head back in laughter, but he didn't laugh. He couldn't laugh. He was manic, incontrollable. "How can you say that? How do you know?"

Hermione stood now, leaning back and clutching her bump, her brown eyes as wild as her hair when it had caught the rain.

"Sirius!" she shouted. "How many times? I don't need you to protect me! You're acting as if I haven't fought in the war… broken into Gringotts…!" Sirius exhaled loudly, mumbling frustrated words no one could make out. "You're forgetting I survived the wrath of Bellatrix Lestrange!"

She had a good mind to say _'even you couldn't do that',_ but she didn't.

_She put her tea on her lap and raised her eyes to his. "I thought of you when Bellatrix was torturing me you know." _

He couldn't meet her eyes.

"I can speak for myself," she snapped, a fierceness in her voice that rendered even Fred speechless. Molly was impressed.

He swallowed hard and bowed his head to the floor, before glancing up again but refusing to look at her. He spoke to Arthur, ignoring Hermione as if she wasn't even there. He wouldn't back down. He was too stubborn, and he knew he was right. Slowly, he drew a photograph from his shirt pocket and held it up for everyone to see. It was a black and white scan, taken last month when he and Hermione went to Queen's - a muggle hospital in London for a check-up. Squinting, sure enough you could see the legs, arms, and head of a little baby.

"This is the best thing that's ever happened to me. If anything happens to her-" he pointed at Hermione. "-_ANYTHING _- Greyback is a dead man. Mark my words."

His jaw clenched, and he roughly picked the chair up off the floor and flung it back into place before sweeping from the room and the house.

Hermione blinked back prickles of tears. "Excuse me."

She hobbled after him as quickly as she could, all eyes fixed on her, watching her leave. They heard a door slam from upstairs, undoubtedly the making of a furious Sirius Black.

"And here I was thinking it was going to be a quiet meeting," Bill murmured, rubbing his eyes wearily. No one was in the mood to chuckle.

She found him slumped in an armchair deep within the library. Book shelves surrounded them. Stepping closer, she could see his eyes were closed. His head was leant against the back rest, exposing his neck and unshaven jaw, and his hair, though it was shorter now, was still mussed, giving the impression that he had run his fingers through it. _Probably swearing with frustration_. He looked physically and mentally exhausted.

"Hi."

His eyes flickered open and she moved to lean against the bookshelf facing him. He knew it would be her.

"Are you here for the books or for me?"

"The books. You just happened to be in here."

For a second, she thought he smiled.

She was wearing white today – a white dress which came down to mid-thigh. Her skin was sun kissed from the warm weather and glowing in a way only an expecting mother could. He gave her a quick once over, swallowed hard and looked away. All too soon it was quiet between them, so she spoke.

"You shouldn't get angry with Arthur. He's like a second dad to me. He means well."

He couldn't be dealing with a lecture. It's exactly what he came to get away from. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and covered his hand over his face. Sometimes, she could be so much like fucking _Molly_.

She surveyed him with pursed lips. "You know that things weren't going to stay nice and normal for long. Wherever Harry, Ron and I are drama seems to follow."

"I know," he said.

"-but Stanley will be there with me at the hospital. I trust Stanley-"

"I know."

He gritted his teeth. If she was trying to calm him down it wasn't working. At all.

She quietly observed him and sighed. Why was he looking so hard done by? It was her who was being thrust to work day in day out helping Greyback, caring for him, tending to him… a man she despised. Sirius hadn't been affected, not in the way that she had. She couldn't help but feel that he was blaming her for all this. Blaming her for everything that had happened. Maybe he was thinking if he'd just stayed clear from her from the beginning then his life would be a lot easier. And it would have been.

He ran a hand down his chest into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a black leather hipflask. She saw what it was and immediately switched – no more soft, gentle Hermione. She crossed her arms, her eyes stone cold and set on him.

"Whisky hmm?" she jeered. "I know you're angry, but you don't have to drink…-" She hadn't had a drop of alcohol in nearly nine months and now just the smell of it made her heave.

Sirius growled and dropped his head back against the shelf with a thud. "Not now alright sweetheart?"

She hated that sneery tone of his.

"Fine!" she shouted. "But just so you know, you are not coming round to see the baby when you've been drinking! I won't let you in!"

He recoiled, his eyes darkening. "What do you mean 'coming round to see the baby'?" It all changed in a split second. The air felt like it had been sucked from the room. "I thought we were living together? Here?" His voice was tremulous, as if uncertain himself. Hermione stood deadly still, nibbling on her lip, her skin as white as a ghost. They hadn't discussed living arrangements.

"I – I need to sit down," Hermione muttered. She leant against the mahogany book case for support.

She hadn't mentioned to Sirius that she was remaining at her flat in Hogsmeade. Had Sirius had assumed that she would be moving to Grimmauld? With all its large, spacious rooms and grand decor it was the perfect family house, and perhaps Sirius wanted that too. A child to run the hallways, just like he and Reg used to do when they were young and knew nothing better. She could imagine them… her and Sirius and their baby here…

...and it was all too much.

Suddenly, she seemed more aware of everything around her; the rich smell of the dark wood, the lingering smell of coffee, the smell of peppermint in the tin on the stand, Sirius' musky aftershave, the leather of his jacket... It all seemed so much stronger somehow, and it all made her feel sick.

"Are you going to live with Stanley?" he rasped, standing and starting towards her with painfully slow steps. "You're leaving me for fucking _him_? HIM!" it hurt just saying it. He hoped he'd be done with all the pain after Azkaban. He wasn't, and returning from the Veil, he still wasn't. After all they'd said to each other in the past, he'd thought she of all people understood what he went through.

"I'm not – I'm not leaving you!" she shouted back. "We aren't together and-"

"And we never will be, I get it!" he barked.

That was another thing added to the long list of things he hated about her. She could make him feel everything and nothing all at once.

"Sirius… I don't feel… I don't feel…" she was reaching out for him, her voice a weak whisper. Minutes ago her skin was beautifully sun kissed and now it was a pasty white and damp with sweat.

Before he could help her, she stumbled against the book shelf and slid down it, gripping on to his shirt.

"Hermione, what are you-?" She didn't respond, and she was paler than ever… like she was about to collapse any minute.

He rushed forward, wrapped his arms around her and hoisted her up even though he was shaking with fury. He didn't let her go. He held her tightly against the bookcase, watching with fear as her head rolled from his shoulder and hit the spine of a John Wilton poetry book. She was murmuring something to him, but her eyelids were drooping; even she didn't know what she was trying to say.

"Don't faint Hermione…" He pushed the hair back from her pale face and pressed against her so she remained upright, but he doubted she could even hear him. "Don't do this to me again…"

She abruptly fell against him, her face buried into his neck. She was clutching onto him and he onto her as he lifted her into his arms, supporting her weight. They were closer than they had been in a long while. "Sirius…" she panted breathlessly, he held her cheek gently and held her flickering gaze.

"Tell me where you're hurting and I'll make it stop," he whispered, so softly and sincerely.

She shook her head, the tears welling in her lovely eyes. Her chest rose and fell rapidly against his firm one. "Sirius… it's…" she was struggling to breath. "The… baby…"

Beautifully timed, he heard a splash of water hitting the floor.

"Well, what wonderful news that was. Sirius was never going to take it well…" Tonks muttered, "Poor Hermione."

"There was nothing I could do to change Kingsley's mind," Arthur explained, somewhat meekly. He was still standing up. He looked sad and worn and older than he had in a long time. "He was adamant this was the right thing to do – I don't want Hermione tending to Greyback! Not after what happened in the War! What he attempted-"

He was talking himself into a hole, rambling and dwelling in self-doubt.

"Enough Arthur. You haven't done anything wrong. This is the Order, there are always tough situations. Stop beating yourself up," Remus said firmly, teacher-like. Arthur looked up at his friend through remorseful eyes and nodded, before Molly rubbed his shoulder comfortingly and got up to put the kettle on.

Crashing stomps sounded through the house, down the stairs and thundered down the hall until the door burst open. Sirius stood wide eyed and panting; everyone glanced up at him in alarm. He was so desperate he couldn't quite speak, but when he did the words spilled out of his mouth in a panic. "Hermione's having the baby and – and she's unconscious and there's..." he gripped his hair in what only can be described as terror and looked up at them all with eyes shining with tears. "There's blood. Everywhere."

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><p><em><strong>Next chapter will be here before you know it. But I have a great idea to pass the time. Why not tell me what you think! ;) Love all your reviews as always, thank you to all those that took the time! - sophie x p.s I hope your all tuning into the Olympics, because then you'll see what shite weather I have to put up with. p.p.s BUZZING for the Dark Knight Rises! OOOH GARY YOU OLD MAN. <strong>_


	14. Hate is Easy, Love Takes Courage

Chap 14: _**Hate is Easy, Love takes Courage**_

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><p>It was a struggle, but they arrived at St. Mungos ten minutes later. The clan hovered around as Hermione was helped into the bed by three healers dressed in dark green robes, and spells were performed to vanish the blood. It did work, for a few seconds, but it was pointless. Blood seeped through her white dress seconds later, even thicker than it was before. The clean spotless bed sheets streaked and soaked dark red underneath. Her breathing became shallow, but no one said anything. Not even when Hermione rolled her head up on the pillow and looked around them all, her skin a ghostly white. No one mentioned how her dry lips cracked as she smiled, or how the spark in her eyes was slowly dimming, like a candle being swallowed up in the darkness. No one said anything.<p>

She reached out and took his hand. He had done it so many times that it felt strange when she did it. It was a good strangeness though. He glanced down as she gently intertwined their fingers, watching with a thumping heart at how her fingertips touched his tattooed knuckles. Perhaps it sounded cliché, but their hands fitted perfectly together. Maybe it was the delicacy and the softness of her hands against his rough ones -… or maybe because it felt like the last time… whatever it was he blinked hard and trembled with restrained emotions. They were becoming harder to push away, just like the lump in his throat had become harder to swallow back. She was looking at him, with those chocolates he had tried to read and never could… If she could feel him shaking, she didn't mention it. He raised his head to hers, his eyebrows raised. Her hand wasn't meant to be that cold, and as she looked back at him she knew it.

"Merlin, what are you doing to me," he murmured to himself, shaking his head and exhaling heavily.

He ran a hand down his face and bit down hard on his lip, so hard he tasted the iron of his blood; he thought he glimpsed the corner of her lips quirk into a smile. Or maybe he didn't. Maybe it was just a fragment of his imagination, and he was seeing what he wanted to see: her, safe and smiling.

She winced as she swallowed and cleared her throat. "You'll stay-?"

Her voice was a broken whisper and nothing more and he could only stare speechlessly at her and nod. It was ironic in a way. She could barely speak, yet it was the first time she had shut him up.

"Sometimes you can be thick Hermione…" he growled, then quietly, softly, "I'll stay until you are sick to death of me, and even after that."

He grinned crookedly.

There were a few chuckles from Remus and the twins behind him, and he thought he saw her lazily roll her eyes like she did a lot around him. Maybe it was because she already was sick to death of him, and that's why they were all amused. Whatever it was, he couldn't do anything but love her in that moment. It was endearing. A man loved to see a woman get all hot and bothered and exasperated over their silly antics. Hermione was always like that with Sirius, snapping at him, calling him names, throwing things at him… He loved it that about her. In those moments the need to shove her against the wall and kiss her till her last breath escaped was never greater. He wouldn't want their relationship with anyone else.

The bed was wheeled through double white doors and Sirius followed. They were taken into an operating room; everything was shiny and white and sectioned off with curtains. Sirius hovered nervously beside her bed, their hands joined under the white covers. Stanley was leading the procedure. His skilled hands flourished as he went about his work, never speaking, never slipping in concentration. Hermione was silent throughout the proceedings too. They had a silent understanding. He wasn't her boyfriend now-, she was his patient, and he was Head Healer Stanley Helbert, doing what he did best: …saving lives. Maybe it was easier for the both of them to deal with that way.

Stanley straightened up and tapped his wand on his hand, where clean white gloves replaced dirty ones. He cleared his throat importantly. "Miss Granger, you are eight centimetres dilated. We won't start pushing just yet, but I shall inform you when we do."

"You'll inform _me?!_ I'm the one pushing!" she gestured dramatically to her bulging tummy and with much struggle she pushed herself up. "Exactly how dilated do you fucking want me?"

"Ten centimetres Miss Granger. Preferably."

"PREFERABLY?! YOU TRY DILATING YOURSELF TEN CENTIMETRES!"

One of the female healers with the name tag 'Jan' widened her legs and all too soon it had started.

"Okay Miss Granger, I need you to relax for me. Your baby is three weeks premature and you have lost a lot of blood already, so the quicker and the smoother the delivery is the more comfortable it will be for you and the baby. Take deep breaths in and out, in and out, and when you're ready to start pushing we'll tell you. You must relax," she instructed, in a firm but kind voice. Hermione made a repulsed face at her as she bent down.

Seconds later a contraption hit her and she was struggling to remain upright with the sheer immensity of it. She was shaking; her eyes were slammed shut and her mouth open wide for a scream that never sounded. Sirius glanced around in panic, unsure of what to do, what to say, how to go about assuring her that everything was going to be okay. It was as if the hustle and bustle around them was put on mute, and all his senses were zoning in on her; he saw her, he heard her, could smell the peachy moisturiser of her skin and the apple shampoo of her hair. He'd seen a bottle of it on top of the sink at Grimmauld. And-

"PUSH NOW MISS GRANGER!"

"AAAAARRRRRGGGHHHHHHHHH! SIRRRIIIUUUUSSSSSSSS!"

He stammered. "Er -…deep breaths love. Deep breaths."

He rested his elbows on her pillow and leant close, stroking her hair back from face and wincing as she squeezed his hand numb. The contraction ended and she slumped against the steel headboard, gasping for air and trying to blow a strand of hair out of her mouth at the same time. Sirius brushed it away and cupped her cheek.

"You're doing great."

She shook her head, her chest rising and falling as sobs raked her body. "I'm n-not-"

"You are."

She watched with watery eyes as he raised her hand to his lips and kissed it. Her cheek was flat against the pillow, her head turned his way. Her skin was whiter than before, and her eyes that little bit more unreachable. "…It hurts Si-Sirius… _everything_ h-hurts… I feel-" she shook her head. "W-weak. It sounds pathetic but I- I don't know if I'll be a-able to pull th-through…"

"Hey, hey! Don't say that! Don't you dare!" he hissed. "It'll be over soon, it'll all be over. The pain will wash away and you'll go to sleep and dream of blue skies, singing birds and the sun setting and when you wake I'll be right here, waiting for you like I always am."

She blinked, venerably. "Promise?"

"I promise."

He was whispering into her hair in a soft sort of urgency and she made a small sound of contentment, and touched his cheek. "I love you when you're like this. You're only nice to me when I'm in a hospital bed."

He drew back from her subtle caresses and frowned. "Do you really think that?"

He was searching her eyes for an answer, and she closed her eyes in exhaustion for a brief second before opening them to him again. "I don't know what to think anymore."

He leant down and slowly pressed his lips to her temple. She smiled weakly, her eyelids fluttering closed at the touch. He went to wipe away an escaped tear from the corner of her eye when he stopped, his hand still in mid-air. When she opened her eyes he was looking at her, and her breath hitched at the tenderness she found there. It was a look of many words; warmth, gentleness and a thousand others that described something that Sirius normally wasn't, yet in that second, that glance, all of them were true.

"I'll do anything to protect you," he whispered, "anything."

Another powerful contraction struck her and her chocolate eyes tore away from his grey's as she lurched backwards, her head snapping to the ceiling. She writhed desperately under the covers and the scream that left her mouth was so excruciatingly loud that the glass chandelier hanging across the room threatened to shatter and fall.

"The head, I can see the head," someone was saying, their voice rising with excitement. "The shoulders now!"

"Did you hear that Hermione?! Did you-…?" he was almost howling with delight, almost unleashing his famous barking laughter and she rolled her head to the side to catch his eyes, leaking with his own tears. It was funny, because she had always wondered what it must feel like to be in labour. Her mother had told her many times over the last nine months over cup of tea and shortbread biscuits that it was the most painful experience in her life; 'Once was more than enough,' she would say. Now Hermione understood exactly why her mother said that.

"Oh my… oh my…" she whimpered, repeatedly shaking her head as the force of the contraction had her arching her back and screaming to the heavens. Her face and forehead was damp with sweat and yet Sirius still kissed her like there was no tomorrow, his voice fierce with passion as he spoke words of encouragement in her ears. Crying his name she lurched backwards up the bed once more.

"One last push! Come on!" Stanley urged her.

"OH IT'S EASY FOR YOU TO SAY!" she suddenly shrieked.

Stanley and Sirius shared a tight lipped, brief exchange. It didn't stop her screaming. None of it did. A muscle was twitching in his neck as he battled with his emotions; she was paler than he had ever seen her. Her cheek, cold and clammy, as if all blood had drained from her face, a far cry from the sun kissed, glowing woman that had set out to find him in the Black library. Now she was grasping onto consciousness by a thread. How could someone change so quickly in less than an hour? How did that happen?

"That's it Hermione! That's it!" Stanley shouted. "Keep going!"

She threw her head back and screamed again, high and ear splitting. It was the type of scream that you dreaded to hear… the type that echoed through shadowy rooms of an abandoned house… the type of scream that haunted your nightmares.

And then it stopped- and there was a slippery thud, a moment's pause and the definite cry of a new born baby taking their first breaths on planet Earth. The sound may become irritating in months to come, but then it wasn't. It really wasn't. It was beauty and new life. Hermione fell against the headboard. A young male healer, Thomas, lifted up her eyelids, shining the lit end of his wand into them and opened her mouth and did the same thing, whilst one of the female healers scooped up the crying baby and carried it off to the corner of the room, where she laid it on a table and started muttering spells.

"You did it love, you did it!" he hooted, squeezing her hand and showering her forehead with loud, enthusiastic kisses. She hummed in amusement and let him. "You did absolutely amazing. I knew you could do it. I told you didn't I? Tell me I'm always right."

She grinned. She could barely keep her eyes open. "Th-thanks, and shush."

He barked with laughter and kissed her again, murmuring to her how proud he was of her. Stanley was watching him with a clenched jaw, but there was no malice in it. "We're just performing the required spells to ensure the baby is healthy and happy. She should be with you in a minute."

Sirius snapped his head to him and swallowed hard. "_She?_"

He nodded, a hint of a smile on his face. "You have a little girl."

Sirius almost choked on his own breath. "A _girl?_ It's a _girl!? I – it's a - MERLIN Hermione it's a GIRL!_"

He was faintly aware that his voice was higher than a seven year old girl on helium.

One of the female healers, Jan, approached him carrying a bundle in her arms. "Congratulations to you both," she said, smiling warmly. She shifted the baby from her arms into Sirius's. "There you go." She raised her hand, moved back the blanket and tucked it gently underneath the baby's head. "She's gorgeous."

Sirius was suddenly nervous and he didn't know why. She wasn't heavy, but fragile and so, so small, about the size of a loaf of bread. Exhaling, he glanced down and looked at his baby daughter for the very first time. A dark brown tuft of hair, a button nose, ears with wet lobes, soft pinky cheeks from crying. Her eyes were closed at first, but then her tiny hand curled round his finger and she yawned, and he caught a tongue - a tiny one, and then round eyes were blinking up at him, a light honey brown. The colour of Hermione's eyes in the sunshine. He froze. He hadn't felt anything like it. He hadn't held something in his arms before that was a part of him. _Made_ from a part of him.

"Hello little one," he breathed. "it's your daddy."

He gently lifted her to kiss her forehead, and he could feel her fingers squeeze tighter around his finger. This one wasn't going to let go. His heart flooded with warmth and he was on his motorbike soaring as high as anybody had ever soared before. He was on top of the fucking world. He had a little girl. He was a dad.

"Hermione, we're _parents!_ She's beautiful, look-!"

Several healers were gathered around the bed. He could tell, from the moment he looked, that something was wrong. Thomas, the male trainee healer, scuttled to the other side, leant over Hermione and desperately flicked his wand. She was still, silent, unmoving.

"What the hell's going on?"

The healers had their backs to him. He rushed to stand beside her and was pushed back by Stanley, though he caught the faintest of glimpses. Hermione was under the light. He'd seen some awful things in his time, but never had he seen so much blood as he did then – on, over and around her body.

"Hermione!"

One of the healers turned to Stanley. "It's too late to perform the spell sir. She's lost too much blood."

"WHY IS SHE BLEEDING ANYWAY?!" Sirius roared. He was helpless and hurting. Her pain hurt him.

Stanley sighed heavily. "In the last few weeks Tonks said she'd been complaining of shooting pains. These must have caused her to go into premature labour. Magic can only stop blood so far."

The slow, periodic beep of the machine stopped. The constant note sounded.

Sirius shook his head, over and over. "No, NO PLEASE, NO! SHE'S NOT DEAD! SHE'S NOT DEAD, SHE CAN'T BE DEAD!" he pulled Stanley by his white robes and flung him to the side, and there she was. Her drooping eyes had fallen shut, and a ghost of a smile was on her lips, probably laughing at Sirius's reaction to their new born. "HERMIONE! _Hermione!_"

His body broke out in sharp sobs, and the baby cried with him, like somehow she had known that her birth meant her mother's death. Her hand was hanging, draped off the bed, where she was holding his hand. He reached for it, and intertwined their fingers. They should always have been joined. He knew that now.

"You need to do something!" he begged, "Make her wake up! Please! Wake her up, bring - bring her back to me..." he could speak no longer.

"Mr Black, I'm sorry," one of them said, "There's nothing we can do-"

"Then get out!" he suddenly yelled. "GET OUT! I WANT TO BE ALONE WITH HER-…" he shook his head and covered his hand over his eyes. "GET FUCKING OUT!"

They left hurriedly, Stanley last, wiping his tears on the sleeve of his robes. He stopped before the door and bowed his head. "I tried everything… but there was nothing we could do. I'm sorry… I know you loved her. The way you looked at her when you thought no one is looking. I knew all along."

He looked up for a second and then was gone with a sweep of his cloak. The door swung shut.

He looked from Hermione, to their baby, to Hermione again. She was so young. She was so bright, funny, thoughtful and caring. And she slipped away. _'There was nothing they could do'_. If ever a sentence could carry heartbreak, it was that, because you won't forget those words; you'll take them to your grave. If you've ever heard those words said to you, you would know, and you would hate the powers of fate, hate that 'everything happens for a reason', because no fate or reason would have been good enough to take that person from you. And yet whoever's up there in the sky can. And they will. And they do.

"Baby Black's arrived love."

They were meant to be celebrating. He sank to the chair, his salty tears running down his cheeks as he gazed into his daughter's eyes, which were so… so like her mother's. He could see the faint dimples on her cheeks, feel her soft skin. She would grow to be just like her. He knew it. Someone was squeezing his broken heart in their hand and laughing at him. A noise sounded, and he glanced up. Squinting, he could see the machine lights beside her bed had turned on. There was another noise, and he sprang up, his breathing hard and fast.

It was a beep.

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><p><em><strong>Won't say much apart from this was one of the hardest chapters I've ever written. And I did shed a few tears writing it! I hope you enjoyed it, and it spurred some kind of emotion in you. I like heavy chapters sometimes. Some fics are too happy! Hit the review button and tell me what you're thinking!<strong>_


	15. Blood I like blood

Chap Fifteen: _**Blood. I like blood.**_

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><p>"Hermione?!"<p>

He was by her side in less than a second, shouting her name over and over, calling her back to him. He had his hands full with the baby but somehow he was holding her too, his arm curled around her thin frame; his hands were always on her, palming, pulling and prying her back to earth. He had seen the glimmer of hope that she might, just _might_ survive and he had snatched it.

The door opened and Remus slid in, his head bowed to the floor. He thought if he wasn't looking at him, then they wouldn't be able to see the grief in one another's eyes, and it would make it easier somehow. He hovered a few feet from the bed at the far side of the room, enclosed with curtains. He didn't know what to say – where to start. What words of comfort could ever make this easier?

"Hey," he said. Sirius didn't reply. "Stanley told us," he muttered, fidgeting with the sleeves of his robes. "Everyone's devastated. You don't deserve this, Hermione didn't deserve this, and the baby…I spoke to Stanley, he says they've tried everything but there's-"

"Don't say there's nothing we can do because there is!" he growled. "I heard the beep, she's alive, she's breathing, I know she is!"

"Sirius look, I know this is hard but you saw it yourself mate, she's gone. She's not coming back-"

"NO!"

"-she's in peace, she doesn't hurt anymore-"

"BUT I AM!" he roared. "SHE'S BROKEN ME ALRIGHT? I CAN'T DO THIS WITHOUT HER, I CAN'T – I CAN'T RAISE OUR BABY WITHOUT HER!"

"Yes you can-" he started, then froze. "What are you doing?!"

"She's not gone! She's not leaving me! I'm not giving up on her like fucking Stanley did!"

Remus watched with terror as Sirius none too gently grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard. Hermione's head bashed against the pillow at the sheer force. The baby started crying. Remus hesitated and ran two hands through his hair out of lack of what to do with his friend, because it was just another sign that she was truly gone. If she was alive, it would have stirred something in her, woken her up perhaps, but her mouth was closed, her eyes were closed, and her body was limp.

"Come on Sirius, give the baby to me and Molly or Tonks can look after her."

"No – no! You aren't taking my daughter away from me as well, I want to hold her-"

Remus shook his head slowly. "What are you talking about? No one's taking your daughter away from you, we're your family! We're trying to help you, and right now your daughter needs feeding and a sleep!"

Sirius stopped shaking Hermione and looked down at the baby. Her mouth was open, her eyes scrunched up and her tiny hands in fists as she cried. Her skin was still a pinkish colour from the birth, but now it was a result of all the tears as well. He seemed to realise then; it dawned on him, and he shook himself out of it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you lovie," he kissed her forehead and shushed and rocked her until her cries died down and she was asleep in his arms.

Remus smiled on at the scene. He knew from the very beginning that he'd be a great dad, anyone who looked at him with a baby could see that, even if Sirius himself didn't. He cleared his throat and gestured to the little one. "Do you want me to take her to Molly?"

"No, it's alright. I'll do it."

They left the room and followed down the corridor to where they all were standing. Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna, Tonks, Teddy, Fred, George, Bill, Fleur, one year old Victoire, and Arthur and Molly. All of them were watching him walk towards them, all of their faces were white with shock, or red and blotchy from tears. Neither Fred nor George had a joke to tell him. Ginny was sobbing into Harry's shirt, her mascara streaking down her cheeks, and Harry, ever the gentleman, ever the hero, was trying to comfort his fiancé and battle his own tears at the same time. Victoire looked around at her mum and dad, not having a clue what was happening, but sensing that she must be a good girl and be quiet. Teddy was peeking around his mother's leg.

"Mummy, where's Aunt Mione?"

Sirius swallowed hard and tried to block out of their faces and just focus on his daughter's little hand wrapped around his finger. It helped. He half looked up at them all. Hermione had once said he was the bravest man she had ever known, but he didn't feel like it without her.

"Here she is. You take her Molly."

"Of course dear."

With one last kiss he passed her over into Molly's arms, though she refused to let go of her daddy's finger and he had to prise her off. Luna leant forward to get a closer look of her. "Oh look, she's just like Hermione," Luna smiled. "She's beautiful."

There were a few murmurs agreement but nothing else; Hermione always had treasured her and Luna's friendship before and after the war. Luna had a strange, but perfect way of putting things that seemed to sum everything else up, and there it was. There was nothing to add.

Sirius swallowed again, blinking hard. He had to leave. All he could think about was what Luna said and a flashback of moments between the two of them – him and her – when he could have told her how beautiful she looked every single day, and he didn't. There were days when he made her cry, made her so angry that she stormed out the house and didn't speak to him for merlin knows how long. There were many things he hated in the world, but above all, he hated how you didn't realise how much you appreciate and love someone until they're gone.

"I've got to …"

His voice trailed to silence. He clenched his jaw and gestured behind him. They understood.

He felt eyes glued to his back as he walked away, and when he slipped into the hospital wing where Hermione lay, he shut the door firmly behind him and fell back against it, closing his eyes. So this is what it felt like to have your heart broken. Actually, his heart wasn't broken, it had been ripped from his body and all that was left was blackness and a bloody trail of what once was. He couldn't cry anymore, but he couldn't do anything else either. It was worse than Azkaban, and Hermione, of all people, knew what Azkaban was like for him. They had spoken about it that night on the sofa in Grimmauld Place.

He snapped his eyes open. He could hear something… It wasn't a beep, but a… it sounded like something was being pulled… across the floor. Wires? He pushed away from the door and approached the curtain. His palms were sweaty, and he was breathing hard, because he had that feeling. The daunting feeling when you step into your house and you know that you aren't alone. He shook his mind of all thoughts and pulled back the curtain. It would just be Hermione.

"Ah. I thought you'd come."

The large figure turned around. A mass of grey, matted hair. It grew up his neck and covered his cheeks like fur and ran all down his body. Long, yellowing nails. Razor sharp teeth. His eyes were black stones, gleaming more than the moon. The moon… Werewolves…

Fenrir Greyback.

"You're meant to be ill! What are you doing with-?"

"I was never ill Black. Healer Helbert will tell you," his mouth split into a grin, his teeth flashing, "Under the imperius curse that boy. Has been for weeks, sending false information to Arthur Weasley, giving me all kinds of potions to send little Miss Granger into an early labour. He did start resisting it near the end, said something about him knowing you loved her, but alas, I had him leave the room before he gave too much away. You really do need to be careful of who you can trust..." he sniggered and cocked his head to the side, scratching his beard with a long bony finger. "I'd have thought you'd have learnt from the first time."

Sirius's hand went straight to his back pocket. "IMPENDIMENTA-!"

"PROTEGO!"

As if in slow motion, a flash of red and purple shot out the end of their wands and hurtled towards one another, colliding in mid-air. The glass chandelier hanging directly above them shattered and plummeted to the floor. Sirius ran for Hermione and jumped on top of her. He covered her body with his and shielded her from the falling shards.

"You can't rescue everyone Black!" he growled, his fang-like teeth bared. "Especially someone who is not yours to rescue!"

A furious flick of his wand and Sirius was thrown a metre backwards, hitting the floor with a thud. He toppled over and over until he rolled to a stop, beaten soft like clay. He threw an arm over his eyes and listened to Greyback's echoing footsteps coming for him, and he didn't move. He couldn't. Yes he could. A kick in the stomach and he was doubling over, squeezing his eyes shut and yelling. One more kick and he rolled over onto his back, spitting out blood and looking up at the towering figure of Fenrir Greyback. Was this the end? Perhaps. Was he scared? Fuck no.

Greyback pulled a large shard of glass out of his shoulder blade so easily it could have been a splinter. He threw it to the floor and carried on, as if there was no interruption.

"I couldn't wait any longer you see, the temptation has become too much to bare. Pale white skin, long dresses, showing off her pretty neck. She's delicious. I've been keeping my eye on Miss Granger ever since she slipped from my grasp the first time at Malfoy Manor. I'm sure now, in this circumstance she won't be so slippery again," he moved to Hermione's bedside and pulled at a wire connected to the machine. It was the last one. That was the noise that Sirius had heard. Greyback knew that she was still breathing and had made sure she would not survive. Sirius saw the wire drop to the floor and he kicked it under the bed.

"You're going to watch as your …_beloved_… is given the time of her life. Literally. She doesn't have long left. We'll never know, but I'm sure she'll love it, I know I will, the main course and the desert…" he cackled and licked his lips. "Now stand up and get out of my sight. I only want the girl."

Sirius was fighting to keep his eyes open. "I can't… I can't m-move…"

Greyback clucked his tongue and withdrew his wand from his pocket. "I really wish things hadn't got like this. Killing is simply a waste if I don't get a bite." He pointed his wand right at his heart. "I'm having the girl. Stand the fuck up. Get out," he said.

Sirius shook his head.

Greyback let out a roar of fury. "I SAID STAND THE FUCK UP!"

Sirius knew it was coming, but it didn't make the pain any better. The third kick smacked into him and burned his insides. When he blinked the ceiling above was a blur. He could've been drunk, because he was being sick - it just wasn't vomit.

"Blood," Greyback sniffed. "I like blood. I like this as well. CRUCIO!"

It hit him hard and fast and a second later he was twitching on the spot. You know when you've suffered enough pain when you can't be bothered to fight back against it. He let the stabbing, the burning wash over him. He even tried to enjoy it, and then it all stopped and he was lying still.

"You're no fun when there's no fight in you. Get up you prick."

Sirius clutched his stomach and managed to push himself up on to all fours. He could hear the faint laughter of the man, the animal behind him, his breath was hot in his ear. Feeling for the cold post of Hermione's bed, he gripped it and clambered up. His legs felt like jelly. His ribs were crushed. He swayed on the spot. He could make out blurs and that was it.

"Ah, you're staying to watch the show?"

Sirius nodded floppily. He couldn't hold his own weight and he buckled against the end of the bed, holding on for dear life. He'd never felt so weak. He glanced up at him, squinting to see what was happening. Greyback had a knee up on the bed, his dirty hands against the bed sheets, ready and waiting to pounce on Hermione, who could still be alive. Neither of them knew, and only one of them cared.

"Lovely. Any final words to your dearest before I begin?"

Sirius blinked hard and nodded again. Greyback held steady and waited, but his eyes were on his prey. "Tell her…" he swallowed thickly and looked up. "Tell her that she's beautiful."

Greyback smiled graciously and crawled closer to Hermione, her eyes ever closed, so unaware, so vulnerable. It broke his heart. "You're beautiful girly."

Sirius gripped onto the post so hard his knuckles were white. "And tell her I'll never let you touch her in a million fucking years."

Greyback's head snapped towards him. "You wha-?"

Sirius's fist swiped through the air and smacked him square in the face. He had used every last strength, every last bit of energy in his body; Greyback's head snapped back at the contact, and he fell off the bed, grabbing Sirius's arm with his nails and taking him with him. It ripped off his skin, and Sirius yelled out in agony. They landed in the glass shards of the chandelier, and, pressing his elbow into his bruised stomach, Greyback rolled on top of him and seized his arm in both hands.

"I told you I liked blood-"

"AVADA KEDRAVA!"

Greyback's body slipped slowly off of him, and lay still and motionless on the floor. Sirius quickly sat up, grimacing at the pain and glanced around. The curtains were open, revealing the whole hospital wing, and Harry was there, with Fred and George, though their wands weren't out. Ron's was. He was standing there, breathing heavily, his wand still pointing shakily at him.

"Bloody hell. That was close. Sorry Sirius mate," he muttered, pocketing his wand hastily. "We were talking to Stanley. He'd been under the imperius curse by Greyback and had thrown it off long enough to speak to us and tell us the truth; he told us that Greyback wasn't ill, and that he had planned Hermione's death all along. And then we heard you yelling. We ran straight here."

He stared at the body of Greyback. "He deserved that," he moved forwards to Sirius and extended a hand to help him up, then addressed the werewolf. "That's from Hermione and Lavender."

There was a sharp intake of breath and a little groan, and all head's whirled around to the bed where Hermione lay. The colour was coming back into her cheeks. Her lips were parted. She looked alive. Her head rolled to the side, and she stirred. She was alive.

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><p><em><strong>ARRRRGGHHHHHHHHHHH! I actually was scared writing this that Greyback was going to jump through my window and devour me in my sleep. But he didn't - hasn't - yet. :) I hope you guys make it through the night as well! I granted your wishes and I updated pretty quick, didn't I? So REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! p.s JK Rowling at the opening ceremony! What a babe.<strong>_


	16. His Heart is Sold

Chap Sixteen: _**His Heart Is Sold**_

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><p>There was an outcry, and everyone rushed to her and gathered around her bed, uttering her name, touching her hair, holding her hands. To see her eyelids flicker open and to see her brown eyes so deep and twinkling like they had never stopped provoked an emotion in them that they couldn't place and wouldn't forget… to be able to say the word 'Hermione' and see her lips quirk into a smile in response… Harry, Ron, Fred and George were very aware that they were living in a moment of miracle. Sirius on the other hand… she spotted him last.<p>

He was standing and staring, his chest rising and falling. Then he disregarded everything and ran for her. What happened next was all a rushed blur, desperation overrode what was sensible, the need to hold her, touch her skin and know that she could feel it overrode the fact that people were watching them with wide eyes and baited breaths. They weren't sure how it came about – there was some leaping and pulling on Sirius's part and scrambling and sobbing from Hermione's and now they were hugging- wrapped in and around each other, as pressed together as you could be with no sign of ever letting go. He was whispering profanities into her ear, and she was silent but shaking. You can always tell when a hug means something to someone, because they close their eyes. They cherish the moment and never forget it.

Both Sirius and Hermione had their eyes closed.

"I can't believe you're alive-" he drew back and examined her face with warm, wet eyes before embracing her again and pulling her delicate frame onto his lap. "You're never going die on me again Hermione, you fucking hear me? Never. Are you trying to kill me?! I – I thought you were – and then the beep – and – and-" he swallowed hard. "Promise me, promise me now, look me in the eyes and tell me you won't leave me again-!"

Her head was buried in the crook of his neck. She looked up at him, her hands trembling and cupping the back of his neck. He gazed back at her, his eyes full of something that made her heart beat faster and breath hitch. She had seen it there before, had seen it there so many times. He brought his hand up and brushed her cheek softly. "Hermione. Talk to me. I waited for you, like I said I would remember?"

A small frown creased her forehead. She swallowed hard and opened her mouth to speak. It was hard for her to speak. Her lungs strained every time she drew breath. He seemed to sense her hurt and ran a gentle finger down her throat, watching her eyes intently and stopping when she made the slightest wince of pain. "I'll stop you hurting love. I swear."

She held his gaze.

He withdrew his wand from his pocket, pointed it at her throat and tapped once. Then, he bowed his head and skimmed his lips along the sensitive skin, softly murmuring a Latin spell as kissed her better in all the right places. It was sensual and tender. Every now and then his eyes would flick up to hers to gouge her reaction, and then his eyes would fall shut again, pouring every emotion he could into every kiss that fired her skin. The sounds of his kisses were all that could be heard in the quiet of the room.

Harry, Ron, Fred and George watched on, with every second that past they felt like they shouldn't have been there. It was a private moment and they felt uncomfortable for witnessing it. She had said something and was running her hands through his hair as he looked back at her, his eyes unnaturally bright, drinking in her every word. He pressed his lips against her forehead in a lingering kiss every other second and he held her tight, possessively, like she was all he needed and everything he wanted. None of them had ever seen him like that before. Not with Maria, not with any other person.

"It's Hermione then."

Harry turned around and frowned at Fred, who was staring at the scene in front of him with wide eyes, as if he had just realised something that had been in front of him for so long. "What's Hermione?"

Fred stepped closer to him and swung his arm around him. "Well Harry, you'll realise this one day mate. Every man has that _one_ woman who can affect them and get under their skin. It can be anyone. Regardless of age, background… Trust me, even the toughest of men – there's always one girl. Dad's is mum right? They've been together for nearly thirty years! Yours is Ginny, obviously. Childhood sweethearts. Remus's is Tonks. Don't need to explain there. Romeo had Juliet. Adam had Eve. Filch had Mrs Norris…" Harry, Ron and George all grinned widely. Fred merely winked. "It's true, I'm telling you! You can have a million women at your beck and call, but there's always one that you'll do anything for. A soul mate if you believe in it. Take Sirius for instance." He nodded at him. "Just look at him. I'm as straight as a ruler but even I can see he's a handsome bugger. He could have any bird he wanted. And he's fallen for Hermione… hook, line and sinker. His heart is sold to her, and once your heart is sold, there's no going back."

Harry glanced back at the pair of them and it dawned on him. Fred was right. "Do you think she knows?"

They all turned to look at the pair again, cuddling on the bed. Fred shrugged. "I dunno, he hides it well. It's his eyes that give him away, and the fact that he can't keep his hands off her o'course. Her heart is sold as well… not to me, unfortunately. She's never looked at me like that, but I tried boys, I tried."

They all laughed and George patted him reassuringly. "You'll find your woman bro."

Ron left to fetch the baby from Molly and returned two minutes later, approaching them slowly with a pink bundle in his arms. Hermione waited, biting her lip with excitement and squeezing Sirius's hand numb. He didn't mind. He would never mind. Whoever was hiding in the bundle couldn't be seen, but their happy baby sounds could be heard. Ron stopped at the bed and passed the baby to Sirius, who in turn passed her on to Hermione. Their hands brushed and prickled at the contact and her eyes shot up to his. He was already looking at her. She could see herself reflected in his grey orbs.

"She's just like you Hermione," Ron told her with a smile that was all sincere.

They both looked down at their daughter, and everyone watched as the baby girl looked up at her mummy and daddy, eyes wide with interest as she sucked her fingers and kicked her legs contentedly. She was incredible. She could capture anyone's heart with one gurgle, one little kick of her legs, one squeeze of your finger. Her skin wasn't pink anymore as it had been when she was born but as soft as silk and her tuft of auburn brown hair which once stuck to her head was fluffy and unkempt where strands stood up from friction with the blanket. Her eyes hadn't changed though. They were still honey brown and as gorgeous as a summer's day. Hermione let out a delighted sob.

"They're the colour of mine when-"

"You're in the sunshine," Sirius nodded.

"She's… she's so small…" she whispered. She watched in amazement as their baby, hours old, wrapped her tiny hand around her finger. It hit hard good and hard then. She had a baby, this was really happening, and she needed her love and care in the same way she had needed her own mother's. This baby was for keeps. Sirius could feel her trembling and he chuckled and wrapped his arm around her; his manly hand rested on her lower hip. She raised her watery eyes to his and they both grinned, thinking the same thing.

_This is it. _

Her daughter squeezed her finger again, wanting her attention. She would never grow tired of giving it. Sensing that another private moment was coming on, Harry, Ron, Fred and George exchanged looks and quietly crept out of the room, leaving them in peace.

Sirius shifted on the bed. "So what shall we call her?" Hermione made a humming sound and cocked her head. "I don't want a star constellation. It'll remind me of my family and you know-" he hesitated. "I want something that means something to us. To both of us, because we made her and-"

She smiled. "I know."

She stared down at their tiny daughter and it came to her.

"I like Evie."

"Evie?"

She nodded. The words slipped from her lips as if she had them unconsciously memorized. "In hebrew it means 'life' and… and her life started in the minute mine was nearly taken away. Life is beautiful and shouldn't be taken for granted." She glanced at him, nibbling her lip with uncertainty. She didn't know what he would say. "It means something to me. Does that mean something to you?"

He didn't say anything for a while, and then he cleared his throat, interlaced their fingers and kissed her on the temple. "Of course it does. I love whatever you love. If there's something important to you, it's important to me too." He held onto his daughter's hand, shaking it. "Hello Evie."

She made a gurgling and kicked her legs.

_Evie._

Hermione turned her head to look at him, an incredulous grin on her face. "Why are you being so nice?" she shook her head and pouted her lips suspiciously. "I don't know how to act! Stop it!"

He barked with laughter. "What, you want me to be a barstard?" She pursed her lips to stop a smile. "Fine," he said, feigning pissed off. "Fine. If that's what you want, that's what you'll get. I'll be a bastard then-" she laughed into her hand and went to shout his name but he interrupted her. "No! Bitch, what are you doing just lying there? My cock needs attention!" she clapped her hand over her mouth in shock. "Come and have sex with me you fucking whore! NOW!"

She shrieked and swatted him on the arm. "SIRIUS!"

The family chose a great moment to burst in shouting congratulations. Remus was the first to walk in, and the expression on his face was something that neither Sirius or Hermione would forget- astonishment, shock and a tinge of disgust. Similarly though, Remus would never forget the position the two of them were in, tangled limbs with the baby between them. If Hermione hadn't been shrieking with laughter, _rape_ would have sprung to mind. Tonks, Molly, Arthur, Luna, Ginny, Bill, Fleur, Victoire and Teddy and of course, Fred, George, Harry and Ron joined them around the bed, and the rest of the day was spent cooing over the baby, each person having their turn to hold her, even Teddy, who had to sit on a chair to be able to hold her properly. He still nearly dropped her, and his hair burned pink with embarrassment. '"He didn't get his clumsiness from me,"' Remus had loudly announced. 'Evie' went down a storm. Molly particularly fell in love with it, and if Molly loved it, all was well. Many photographs were taken on muggle cameras that Arthur had been overly fascinated by; each flash was another memory captured. It turns out Ginny loved using her authoritative skills to boss people into certain poses and positions, particularly Sirius and Hermione. They had taken countless photographs together with Evie. Hermione felt slightly nervous the first time, smiling as he wrapped his arm around her. It was something that couples did. Wasn't it? She didn't know. She didn't know much anymore. Not how she felt about her boyfriend. Not even how she felt about the father of her baby. She watched as Sirius held Evie and chatted to Harry, his barking laughter filling the room. When it neared eight o'clock she settled down with the girls around her bed and told them of her confusion. '"Do what your heart says,"' Luna had said, '"it's easy if you listen."'

Stanley popped in to see her before they left the hospital the next day. Sirius took Evie and left the room without a word and Stanley wasted no time hugging her, kissing her, and arranging dinner the following Saturday, a week's time. She told him of the decision that she and Evie would be living at Grimmauld Place with Sirius for a while, that they would look for an alternative when things weren't so chaotic and up in the air. Molly had suggested it to them and she and Sirius agreed - without saying anything to each other. Stanley seemed peeved, but he accepted it and let her go off with one last kiss and cuddle, and now she was at Grimmauld, standing at the entrance of the bedroom that Sirius had converted into a nursery with custard yellow walls; there was a hanging mobile of flying broomsticks over the cot, and a bunch of cuddly toys inside. A fluffy black dog and a ginger cat peeked out from under the duvet. Hermione grinned.

Sirius walked up behind her, bobbing the baby up and down. "What?"

"Padfoot and Crookshanks?"

"I loved that cat. You remember when you were in your third year? Shrieking Shack?"

"How could I forget?" she fell silent for a moment. "And now we have a child together."

He laughed and groaned at the same time. "Don't say that after I mention you being in your third year! It makes me sound like a paedophile."

She shoot him an amused look and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say… pedo."

"OI! _Fuck!_" he winced in pain and quickly shifted Evie in his arms, so she was lying flat instead of upright against his shoulder. "Don't kick Evie baby," he told her with a strained voice. "Your dad's hurt his ribs fighting some crazy werewolf. I sorted him out though." He kissed her tiny fingers and blew a raspberry on them. She squealed happily.

"I'll put her in the cot," Hermione said, holding out her arms. "She needs a sleep anyway. She's had a long day today. We all have." She was right. Little Evie had her eyes squeezed shut and her tiny hands curled into fists as she yawned; Sirius left a kissed on her nose and on both her cheeks before passing her over.

Hermione watched her drift off to sleep, her tiny body enveloped in the duvet. She was so small; it was hard to believe that one day she'd grow up like them, probably to a taller height than her - Sirius was well over six ft. Leaving a kiss on her forehead, she propped the baby monitor on the stand, turned to switch the light off, and left the room.

She walked across the hall to the bedroom that she was staying in. It was the room that Harry and Ron had slept in for Christmas in their fifth year. It was the last bedroom on the second floor, opposite the staircase leading to the third, where Sirius's bedroom was. It was only his up there. She'd made sure they were sleeping as far away from each other as possible, to limit their chances of bumping into one another in the middle of the night on the way to the bathroom or to get a glass of milk downstairs. Just imagining his four poster bed and maroon sheets gave her shivers. She'd woken up there once. She didn't want to do it again. A floor separated them. That would have to do. With that thought in mind, she stepped out into the hall and headed for the bathroom.

The shower was just what she needed to clear her mind of a hectic twenty four hours… a hectic nine months really. The bathroom had been redecorated since she'd stayed there, with flash white and black tiles, a bath that could fit four. The shower was equally as big and had bottles of all sorts of shower gel, shampoo and conditioner and razors in. They weren't all Sirius's, but the small dark bottle of aftershave on the mirror ledge definitely was. Closing her eyes, she rinsed her hair of all the conditioner and stepped out, grabbing the towel hanging from the radiator. Thinking of Sirius- he'd had been downstairs for the last hour, doing goodness knows what. She'd be okay making a quick dash across the landing to her room without getting caught surely? She'd have to risk it. She reached for the door. Before she had even touched it, it sprang open. She felt him before she saw him.

"_No! Stop!"_

"What-?"

It wouldn't have been that bad if she had her towel wrapped around her, but seeing as it was sprawled up on the floor, dropped from pure shock; it was very bad. She was standing in front of him completely naked. He stared at her, his hand still on the door handle. She saw his adam's apple bob as he swallowed. She saw his eyes travel down her body, his mouth open. She saw his tongue lick his lips. She felt her body flush, and he stared more. It was like she was being x-rayed.

She snatched up the towel and threw it round her, making sure it was covering her completely. "You could've knocked! What are you doing?" He actually met her eyes then.

"I didn't know you were in there! I would never have – …" he gestured to the shower and cleared his throat. "I was going to have a shower and a shave but-" he swallowed again. "I'll wait. I can… wait. I'll… I'll – er… – go upstairs." He went to turn around but stopped himself and glanced back at her, his smoky eyes now black jewels lingering on every part of her body. "I hope Stanley realises he's the luckiest guy in the fucking world." He exhaled shakily. "You look gorgeous."

Her cheeks flushed. "Sirius-"

He bowed his head for a moment, collecting himself, then looked back up. "What did he say to you earlier? When I left the room?"

She wrapped the towel tighter around her. She couldn't believe him. "That's got nothing to do with you!"

"IT HAS! YOU ARE TO DO WITH ME HERMIONE, YOU ARE!" he bellowed.

She glanced around, her eyes wide. "You'll wake the baby!"

He lowered his voice, but his desperation was as clear as ever. "Just tell me. Are you still with him? I need to know."

"Why?"

He ran a hand through his hair. "Because I..." he closed his eyes, and she thought his ribs were hurting him again, because he looked in pain. Then he smiled like nothing had happened. "Nothing. Forget I said anything. Goodnight."

She heard him swear under his breath, and then he disappeared up the stairs without looking back.

She bit down on her lip self-consciously, but already she could feel her anger at him slipping away like sand through her fingers. Upstairs, Sirius had slammed his door shut, his breath coming out in pants as if he had just ran a marathon. He buried his head in his hands and kicked his chest of drawers in fury before laying back on to his bed, unzipping his trousers and shoving them and his boxers down in one swift movement. He dropped his head back, clenched his jaw and proceeded to wank himself off furiously, the image of Hermione's naked body, her thighs, her bobbing breasts, all slick wet with water, imprinted in his mind. It would never leave him.

All this… and it was only the first night.

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><p><em><strong>I wanted to do an update before I went back to school. Which is in about seven hours. *yells shit*. Anyway. 1) Evie? Yay or nay? 2) how much are you in love with Sirius right now? He is so perfect. Ah. Anyway thank you for the reviews everyone, this story is nearing to an end and I'm determined to go out on a bang. I can't thank you enough for the entertaining comments. Some of you should be comedians, honestly! Hope you all had a lovely summer! P.S MURRAY TO WIN US OPEN! <strong>_


	17. Australia and a Phonecall

Chap 17: _**Australia and a Phonecall**_

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><p>Andromeda popped round for dinner with Ted three days after the birth, and from the moment she picked Evie up, rosy cheeked and crying and looked up into the dark twinkling eyes of her auntie Sirius knew who to name his daughter after. He and Hermione had been stuck for middle names, ooing and erring over Marie, Anne, Maisy… they were pretty but none of them were special or personal to them, and Andromeda was both. The morning after her printed birth certificate arrived at the window, in the beak of a ministry owl. It read:<p>

_CERTIFICATE OF BIRTH_

_Full name: Evie Andromeda Black_

_Date of birth: 13__th__ July 2001_

_Place of birth: Waterloo, London_

_Gender: Female_

_Forename and Surname of father: Sirius Orion Black_

_Forename and Surname of mother: Hermione Jean Granger_

It was perfect. She was perfect.

Asides from her mummy and daddy, Evie loved her Auntie Andy most out everyone… -with the exception of Teddy. She had a soft spot for Teddy; she squealed and bubbled whenever he came round the house, her honey eyes set on his floppy mop of hair. It had become a game. Sirius would sit on the sofa with Evie in his arms and Teddy would sit cross legged in front of them, rapidly changing his hair colour. She would squeal and clap her hands at the ones she loved… maroon, gold, sandy blonde and chestnut brown, and she would turn her head into her dad's neck at the ones she didn't – white, green, purple and orange. It was starting to become the Sunday evening's entertainment after Roast dinner at the Weasley's. They would all sit round the sofa, drinks in hand, and laugh until their cheeks hurt at the baby girl that could make the most heartless of men tingle with warmth.

Although the little angel was hard work… they were both shattered. It had been one month since the new arrival. One month of being parents, one month of waking up to crying and glimpsing at the clock to see it was four in the morning. They were changing nappies, Hermione was breastfeeding, Sirius had got sick on his shirt – twice, and they'd been snapped pushing a pram in Diagon Alley whilst shopping with Harry and Ginny. They made the front page of the Daily Prophet. From escaped convict to thrilled father. A lot had changed, and he loved every minute. They both did.

"So," Remus smiled, "how's Maria?" he slid him a butterbeer.

They were at the Three Broomsticks for a catch up over lunch while Hermione had taken Evie and gone to visit her parents in Australia. Sirius had offered to take them on his motorbike, but Hermione had soundly refused on the basis of what happened last time on that God-awful journey to St. Mungos for a check-up- and with that in mind, she used the floo network instead. They'd only go for three days and he missed them from the moment they stepped into the fireplace- Hermione smiling and waving Evie's little hand- and disappeared. Now he felt deflated and miserable. There was no better time to chat to your best mate – especially when you had a beer in your hand and steak and chips in front of you.

"How come you've stayed at Maria's every night for the past week?"

"I haven't," Sirius said, taking a long sip of the warm bubbling drink. He immediately felt better. He licked away the frothy cream on his upper lip before Remus could smirk and annoyingly remind him. "I go round for a shag and leave." He said it as if it was simple and normal, though it wasn't either.

"For the past week?!" Remus shook his head in disbelief and tucked his napkin into his shirt, one of the very few grown men that still did. "How do you have the energy to have sex that much right now what with Evie and -?"

Sirius picked up his knife and fork and looked at him, a lazy grin spread across his face. "I always have energy for sex mate," he stabbed into his steak. "And I'm fed up of wanking." He frowned, mulling something over for a second before shovelling his steak into his mouth and proceeding to chomp enthusiastically; every now and then he would stop to take a long sip of his beer. Remus watched him, his eyes squinting in amusement and intrigue all at once.

"Why are you wanking when you can have sex? You're not a teenager."

"I know."

"So then why are you doing it?"

Sirius slowed his chewing and stared hard at the counter. Evidently there was something on his mind.

Remus raised his eyebrows, "What's wrong? Cat got your tongue? That's a first," he chortled, gesturing with his fork. "I'm guessing it has something to do with Hermione, it usually is, so let's have it. What's she done now that's got you panting like an angry, horny schoolboy-?"

Sirius immediately dropped his cutlery and lunged for his drink. "Merlin, you exaggerate everything."

Remus rested his head on his elbow and rolled his eyes.

"So that's a yes then." He gave him a knowing look. "Did you see something you shouldn't?"

Sirius elbowed him roughly in the ribs. "Fuck off Moony."

He squeezed his eyes shut and winced. "Alright, alright, you don't want to talk, that's fine. You're living together… maybe you saw her in her underwear by accident or something and you're too embarrassed to admit it - I don't know… whatever it is I know it's about her. It's always about her."

He was cutting harder into his meat, the barbecue sauce sloshing over the plate, an angry glint in his eyes. "Let's just talk about something else yeah?" It wasn't a question.

Remus rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. "Come on. Don't be too hard on yourself. She's beautiful, and you're only a man…" he trailed off, glancing at him for some kind of reaction. Sirius only clenched his jaw, chewing furiously and glaring at the alcoholic bottles behind the bar. "At least you aren't denying it."

He switched at that. "Denying what?"

"That it's about Hermione. If it wasn't, then why else would you go to Maria's house five nights in a row?"

"Because Maria is my girlfriend!" he hissed. "Why do people always think it's fucking _her_ – _Hermione_ that's made me angry?! – Why can't I just be angry? Because of that fucking article in the Prophet, everywhere I go I hear her name! Walking through Diagon Alley, everyone comes up to me- asking me about the baby, if we're happy, about when we're getting married!? They must know we aren't together-"

"Well, they must think you are now. If people knew that it was just a one night stand there would be uproar Sirius, you know that. Hermione is seen as an angelic role model to all wizarding children- she'd lose all her popularity, and you'd no longer be seen as sexy bachelor but as a serial womaniser! Not that you weren't already but you know what I mean."

Sirius had the good nature to laugh, albeit bitterly. "Right."

Remus laughed too, and then fell quiet, contemplating something. "Answer me honestly: Is it just sex or do you like Maria? Really like her?"

Sirius scratched at his stubble before sighing heavily. "Save your breath Moony, you know the answer."

"Well then break it off with her now! -Think about it, Hermione's away for – what? – two days? You haven't got Evie to look after, it's the perfect time to call Maria up, arrange to see her and end it like you should have ended it months ago!"

He shook his head. "I can't."

"Oh come on! Why? You just admitted yourself it's about the sex!" Sirius said nothing and he sighed exasperatedly. "Look, all I know is that you never talk about women you care about and you talk about Maria and you never mention Hermione unless I bring her up. See what I'm getting at here?"

Sirius growled under his breath and hung his head in the air, as if praying to Merlin or whoever was up there to give him strength. "Don't alright? Don't pretend you know what I'm thinking because you don't understand. I can't break it off with Maria, I – I need – I need that sex."

Remus furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and Sirius put his face into his hands, almost in shame.

"Oh bullocks…" he whispered to himself through gritted teeth. His hands were clenched in fists on the bar and he closed his eyes.

"Sirius?"

"It's her," he snapped. "It's her. Hermione," his voice was hoarse and when he opened them, his eyes unnaturally dark. "She's driving me crazy."

Remus put down his cutlery. "Well she always has, but it has become more noticeable these past few months I must say. Go on."

Sirius grimaced and picked up his beer, taking a long, much needed swig. He slammed the empty glass down and moodily requested another one, his eyes sullen. "She does these little things…" he ruffled his hair. "She breastfeeds with her bra off for skin on skin bonding and then takes ages to put it back on."

Remus stared before abruptly chortling, and Sirius scowled at him, his lack of amusement couldn't be clearer. "So you've – you've seen her breasts?" Sirius clenched jaw was his response, and Remus grinned. "I knew it would be something like that. I _knew_ it! If I remember rightly, you described her breasts as being 'out of this world' a few months back. Remember? No wonder she's driving you crazy. Has she only done it the once?"

He looked highly amused, and Sirius, fuming, refused to meet his eyes. "Three, four times…"

Remus laughed loudly and he glanced at him, angrily and desperately all woven into one. "It's not fucking _funny!_ I _love_ her tits! If you saw them then you'd understand – they are the best I've ever seen and-!" he puffed his cheeks out incredulously, "I've seen a fair share!" Remus laughed more and he slammed his fist against the counter. "THEY BOB UP AND DOWN WHEN SHE WALKS!"

Remus sobered and shifted in his seat. "Oh," he nodded in understanding. "It's lovely when they do that."

"And she walks around in bare feet and her – her toenails are painted red," he swallowed and closed his eyes. When he opened them they were blacker than they were before, like stones. "I loveher feet as well… she's got such perfect feet. And she leaves her underwear in the bathroom after she's had a shower. Their creamy… French lace," He looked at him with a pained expression.

Remus started eating again. "Tonks wears purple."

"I don't want to know about my cousin – _Remus!_" he slammed his hand against the counter again, making his eyes jump up. "She cooks dinner for herself right? And she could always use magic to collect the tray from the fucking oven but no – she bends over right in front of me and- and her arse is just… it's perfect…and-" he swore under his breath and moved his hands, as if it would help him form a sentence. It didn't.

Remus glanced around them. "Calm down will you?!"

Sirius clutched his hair and sat up again, not appearing to have heard him. "She comes back from her run hot and sweaty and breathing hard and it's just like it was…Halloween…" he didn't know what to do with himself. He knitted his fingers together and stared at the wooden bar. "I've had her like that. I've seen everything. Why do I still give a crap about her? Why do I still want her so much?"

"Maybe it's because women throw themselves at you, whereas she pushes you away."

"Well she won't be able to push me away for much longer if she keeps misplacing her bra. You know I think she's put me under some sort of spell to make my dick so hard. It doesn't get that hard for any other girl." His voice was an angry growl.

Remus raised his eyebrows in surprise and glanced around him, making sure there was no one eavesdropping. The closest person was on the opposite side of the bar, out of hearing range. "Is it just sexual feelings or-?"

He shrugged and bowed his head, his voice a miserable mumble. "Well yeah, but we have these moments, and I think she must feel _something_ for me. But then every time she carries on as if nothing happened and…" he exhaled and growled all at once, in one breath. "And then Stanley's knocking on the door and she's all dressed up and they're going to swanky fucking restaurants for dinner, and… she looks so gorgeous I…" he hesitated and shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. She confuses me. How is it that she can fuck with my head when she's on the other side of the world?"

Remus patted his shoulder. "Who knows, that's women for you. We'll never understand what's going on in that mind of theirs, there's no point trying, we'll only get it wrong. Come on," he said heavily, "the game starts at two. Ginny's flying on her new broom." He signalled to Rosmerta for the bill and they left minutes later, Sirius adjusting himself on the way out.

It was the first time in his life that he'd attended a Quidditch match and wanted to be somewhere else. Even if the Holyhead Harpies were playing completely stark naked, flying about with their bits on show, he doubted he'd watch. He didn't gave a flying shit about the score or which team won and couldn't pretend like he did either, so when the family were all up on their feet in the Royal Box, loudly cheering as a blur of ginger hair streaked past them and their hair whipped against their faces,- Ron was screaming his head off, Harry watching his fiancé like a hawk, Arthur, Remus, Fred and George deep in a discussion of the game play, Molly smiling proudly and clapping, Sirius was sitting down, hating the rowdy crowd he normally fit in, hating the bellow of rude insults towards the opposition that he would normally shout. He picked at a bit of chipped paint on the stand. Mostly he hated the fact that he was furious, in his blood and veins, because of her-

Because he was here and she was there.

"Uncle Siri! Uncle Siri! I don't like it!" Someone was pulling on his trousers.

Next thing he knew Teddy was clambering up onto his lap, struggling because his coat was too big for him. Why did parents always buy their children the wrong size coats?! He'd call Remus up on it later. Right now Teddy was burying himself into his arms; either he was playing hide and seek and trying to find the best hiding place, or he wanted a hug. Sirius wrapped his arms around the boy.

"Hey, hey what's all this Teds? What's wrong?"

Teddy peeked up at him, his nose running and blue hair tousled. "Someone pushed me and then – and then I couldn't find mummy."

"She's gone to get some butter beers with Luna hasn't she? She'll be back in a minute, don't worry." He dug in his pocket for his handkerchief and wiped his nose then hoisted him firmly onto his lap, whispering in his ear. "And who pushed you? I'll sort them out, I can sort anyone out. Everyone's scared of me."

Teddy's sad pout turned quickly into a giggle. "I'm not!" he roared, bouncing up and down excitedly. It was amazing how a child could change so quickly. "Auntie Mione's not!"

Sirius stilled for a second before glancing down at him and nodding. "You're right Teds, Auntie Mione's not." He looked away, swallowing hard.

Teddy turned to look around. "She's not here," he said sadly. "Where is she?"

"Er… she's in Australia Teds. You know Australia?"

He shook his head and Sirius almost smiled. Of course he didn't know Australia. He was four years old. He probably didn't even know what country he was in now. He was piping up again, tugging on his leather jacket. "Where's Evie? I want to play with her."

"Evie's with Aunt Mione in Australia too, they've both gone." He swallowed again and Teddy looked up at him, tiny lines crinkling his forehead as he frowned. Young children always had that almost seer-like trait of knowing when someone was pretending they were okay. No matter who they were or what age the person was, little kids who didn't know the realities of the world could spot a fake smile when they saw one. They knew that real smiles reached their eyes and fake ones didn't … in ways that a fully grown person couldn't. Sirius realised that when he smiled and tousled Teddy's hair.

"You are sad," he told him.

Sirius grinned crookedly and looked out across the Quidditch pitch, at the span of grassy green hills surrounding it and all the huge trees that would have only been roots in the ground eighty years ago. The sun was low, and pastel oranges and pinks streaked through the sky like aeroplane trails. Like a painting. It was moments like this that he lived for. He hastily wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. If Teddy picked up on it, he'd blame it on the breeze.

He looked down at him, very aware of the lump in his throat. "Never fall in love mate."

The little boy's eyes widened and his teeth bit his lower lip, as if his uncle had just revealed something naughty. "Why?"

"Because you can't make it go away, and it hurts. All the time."

"Why?"

Sirius shrugged and sighed. " I don't know Teds. It just does."

"Do you love Maria?"

He clenched his jaw, closed his eyes and finally… shook his head.

Teddy lit up.

"Who then? Who? Who? Who?" he started chanting.

He coughed and shook his head. Teddy's eyes widened again and he buttoned his lips, thinking for a moment. "I love my bed time slippers and my crayons and my bike."

He'd bought him it for Christmas last year, a mini version of his, though this one didn't fly or go very fast. Sirius grinned. "I know you do, but this is a bit different Teds." He cleared his throat and looked up into the sky. "You know all those bed time stories your mummy reads to you before you go to sleep? Where there are princes and princesses?" the boy nodded, listening and holding on to his every word. "Well … it's like that. Hermione … " He fiddled with his bracelets. "She's my princess."

"_Really!_"

He squealed so loud that Remus recognised it as his son's and turned to face them. Sirius hastily gave him the thumbs up, and his oldest friend turned around again, albeit suspiciously. Teddy hadn't noticed his dad in the slightest; he was breathless, bobbing up and down. "Are you her prince?"

"I don't know… but you tell no one Teddy, okay? It's our little secret."

The boy nodded and pursed his lips shut. Sirius passed him to Tonks and a minute later barged past the crowds and apparated home.

It was dark when Hermione flickered open her eyes and squinted at the clock on the wall. Twenty six minutes past three. Evie was asleep in her cot, the slow sounds of her breathing crackling through the monitor. It had been the longest journey. England to Australia didn't happen in one floo, it happened in twelve and it drained every ounce of energy from your body. She rolled over and realised why she woke up in the first place: the vibrations of her mobile. It was under the pillow. She blindly felt for it.

"Hello?" she said with a yawn.

"Come home." The voice was harsh and rough.

She was suddenly wide awake, her heart thumping against her ribcage. "Sirius?!" she panicked, completely and utterly caught off guard. She shook her head clear. "You know what the time is here. I'm sleeping!"

"Promise to come home now and I'll stop calling."

She swallowed thickly and half laughed, half huffed in annoyance. "And start sending me letters instead? How much have you had to drink?!" he growled and she sleepily smiled. "Can't this phone call wait? I'm really exhausted."

"I know… I won't be long…" she could sense his hesitation. "I just wanted to say goodnight to Evie. Can you hold the phone up to her so I can hear her sleeping?"

Hermione melted. Her lips curled into a smile and she slipped out of bed to the cot and held the phone close to Evie's face, her cheek flat against her quilt and one tiny hand curled into a fist beside her. There was silence down the phone as he listened. A few minutes later she brought the phone back up. "She has her dummy in, but did you hear her?"

"Perfectly." Somehow she knew he was smiling. "How did she find the journey?"

He was croaking slightly, and she smiled again, resting the phone against her ear as she climbed back into bed. "She was a bit restless but not too much trouble. She's been sleeping for most of the day… she knows you're not here… I can tell. She misses you," she added in a small voice. He shakily exhaled and she looked at their daughter. "Two days. I'll give her a kiss from you each night. On the nose."

She took his silent reply as gratitude, and the seconds of biting her lip, wondering whether to speak but hoping he would dragged on and on. He read her mind. "So… are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said.

She pictured him nodding. "How are your parents?"

"They're good too- given Evie lots of clothes and toys. I think she feels a little spoiled for choice actually."

He chuckled lowly and she wriggled her toes and laughed softly too. Slowly it trailed to silence once more. This time it became awkward more quickly and she rushed to break it. "Er… I think I'd better get back to sleep now, we've got a busy day tomorrow, mum's taking us shopping-" she let out an exaggerated yawn to prove case in point. "And it must be costing you a fortune anyway -"

"I don't care about the money-"

"Goodnight Sirius."

"-Hermione-"

"Hmm?"

He braced himself in his bed, body as stiff as a board. His fist was clenched so tightly his nails dug into his skin and made half-moon shapes.

"Don't think I don't miss you too." His voice was hoarse and cracking with strain, as if he was speaking through a fireplace. "Because I do." Hermione curled up in her bed and closed her eyes, listening to the roughness that was his voice and that was – ultimately, Sirius himself.

"I think you were meant to get pregnant."

She pushed herself up again on her elbows, slowly shaking her head. You really couldn't predict this man. "I'm sorry?!" she nearly laughed in surprise.

His eyes flickered to hers, and he said it again. "I think you were meant to get pregnant."

"I don't understand-"

"I've been using the same contraceptive spell all my life," he spoke over her, "and I've never had it not work. Why would it not work this one time? It wasn't like we did anything wrong – I said it at the right time- why would-?"

"I don't know Sirius, why are you bringing it up?" Huffing she glanced at Evie's sleeping form through the gaps in her cot, and how her small chest rose and fell slowly. She brought the phone back to her ear. "I'm going, Evie's sleeping and I'm tired-"

"I haven't finished talking to you-!"

"Well I've finished talking to you!"

"FOR FUCK SAKE!" he suddenly yelled. "STOP PUSHING ME AWAY! I've had nearly a year of it and I've had a-fucking-nuff! Can you not see what you're doing to me-?"

"Stop it Sirius!"

"How long are you going to ignore it?"

"Ignore WHAT?" She was stepping on eggshells, and she knew it.

Fear was firing up her stomach and burning her throat. Sirius stared the opposite wall of his bedroom as if it was her face, twisted in a scandalised expression. Down the phone he could sense her thumping heart, her sweating palms… he clutched his head in his arms and let it all out.

He sprang from the bed and punched his fist against the wall repeatedly.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT HERMIONE? WHAT - DO YOU WANT - FROM ME? BECAUSE I KNOW WHAT I WANT… AND YOU KNOW WHAT I WANT TOO…!"

Tears leaked her eyes and she gripped the phone tighter. "I don't know what you're talking about-!"

He cut her off. "OH YOU DON'T? I FUCKING WANT _YOU _HERMIONE! I WANT ALL OF YOU – TO MYSELF - FOREVER! AND WE ARGUE ALL THE TIME AND DEEP DOWN, I KNOW YOU WANT ME TOO! JUST SAY IT! SAY THAT YOU WANT ME! TELL ME YOU LOVE ME! STOP PRETENDING LIKE YOU DON'T _FEEL_ IT, I CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU ANYMORE-!"

Hermione was sobbing now, and she was almost one hundred percent sure Sirius was too. "You can't – you can't SAY those things when you're with Maria-!"

Sirius was besides himself. He didn't know how else to say it. "I DON'T WANT HER! - I DON'T WANT _ANYONE _-!"

There was silence down the line, and it was unbearable to listen to. He was breathing hard, she was quietly crying. He grit his teeth.

"I only want _you_."

"Why?"

"I love you-"

"No, you don't-!"

Trembling, she quickly hung up and threw the phone as far away from her as possible. She tossed and turned in bed, and no matter how jet lagged she was, she didn't get back to sleep.

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><p><em><strong>Just want to say that I truly love and rate all my readers for staying with this story for seventeen chapters of angsty tension WAITING for some kind of kissembrace/sex! It's coming. The wait is nearly over! How do you think it'll happen? Smack that review button! Oh and show some love for horny Sirius! It's the best thing to write! haha**_


	18. The Three Ducks and the Lake

Chap 18: _**The Three Ducks and the Lake**_

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><p>"<em>Stop crying love, I don't like it." <em>

_His nose buried in her hair as he kissed her head. Slowly she shifted on his lap, so that she was snuggled into the crook of his neck, and he wrapped his arms tighter around her until the sobs turned into sniffles and gasping breaths that raked her body. They had never been in such close proximity before. She'd only ever seen his leather jacket, not run her fingers over the cold texture of it. She had seen his strong hands hold bottles of Ogden's, and flick his wand with casual elegance, and punch Lucius Malfoy, but she'd never felt them intertwined so perfectly with her own. He watched her, and she watched him; occasionally he would brush a strand of hair from her face, and it would fall down again. She'd do her best not to laugh, but he'd always notice. _

"_Your tea is going to get cold," he murmured, leaning to kiss her again, this time on the temple. _

_She sniffed and pulled back from him, using the back of her sleeve to wipe any trickling mascara from her face. He touched her hand to still it, and began wiping her tears away himself with his thumb. His eyes twinkled with amusement when he leant back against the sofa, looking her over. "There you go. You no longer look like a panda." _

_Catching his smirk and biting back a small smile of her own, she reached for her steaming cup of tea on the coffee table. Closing her eyes she took a long sip, and let out a sigh as she swallowed the contents. It had the same warm, bubbly effect that butterbeer had. He was still watching her, rubbing his warm hand down her back. "Better?" _

_She leant to put the mug down and lay back against him. "Marginally." _

_He chuckled and stroked a finger softly down her cheek. "That was then 'Mione. My family are dead. James and Lily still live inside here…" he placed his hand over his heart, "as they do in Remus's and as they always will in Harry's. I'm not alone. I'm happy. Happier than I've been in a long time."_

"_Hmm… if that's the truth," she said, absently fidgeting with his shirt collar. "Then I'm pleased for you." She snuggled against his chest as an endnote, making it easier for him to wrap his arm around her. _

_He pulled her further onto his lap, his hand resting against the smooth skin of her thigh and the other smoothing back her hair. "I don't want you to get upset because of me, alright? Because you're strong and bright and courageous and – and-" he grinned and scratched his stubble, "beautiful and very, very sexy…" she felt her cheeks warm with a blush. Clearly, he hadn't seen her first thing in the morning. "You have your whole life ahead of you and you shouldn't be-"_

_She shifted awkwardly. "Sirius, it's fine really, you don't have to pretend to care."_

_He stopped and stared at her. "What? Hermione-" she was still fidgeting with his collar and he grabbed her hand and lifted her chin up, effectively meeting her eyes. "Wait-"_

"_What?" _

"_You think I don't care?" _

_She stubbornly looked down. "Why would you when we constantly argue-"_

"_I still care about you," he said firmly over her. "I've always cared." She said nothing and he ran his hand up the side of her shirt, causing it to bunch up as he leant to whisper huskily in her ear. "You'll always be my favourite swotty bookworm." _

_She reluctantly smiled and rolled her eyes as he shook with lazy laughter. "And you'll always be the itch that I can never get rid of you annoying man, you serial heartbreaker," she said, biting her lip cheekily and laughing out loud at his look of bewildered innocence. "Don't! My mother warned me about men like you." _

_His lips twitched into a grin. "Did she now? Well you can pass the message to your mother that I find her warning extremely offensive. In fact, I'm hurt love. I think women describe me as a knight in shining armour," he wrapped his arms securely around her waist and licked his lips, so obviously revelling in their banter. _

_She laughed throatily. "You certainly aren't mine."_

_He raised his eyebrows and inched closer. "No?"_

_His breath caught on her lips and she shook her head, almost quivering. The heat in the room had just got higher. They were an inch apart, their noses were brushing, she could see the swirls of silver in his eyes, and see the moistness of his lips, and feel the squeeze of his hands on her back; she could hear the low whines of his leather jacket as he moved slowly, like he was holding glass and he was scared she'd break. _

"_Why can't I be yours?" _

_She tried to swallow the anxiety she was filled with. How had everything changed so quickly? "I don't need a knight," she said simply. "I do just fine by myself."_

_He made a snorting sound as if to say 'I bet you do'. _

_She scowled. "And anyway _Black_," she hissed, eyes twinkling, "we're too different, you and I."_

_Her hand came to rest on his chest as she said it, her fingers brushing tentatively against the light scattering of hair where the first few buttons on his shirt had been left open. It was a low blow, and he knew it. Rarely was he pushed back – if ever. He didn't frown as she expected him to though. He raised his eyebrows in challenge. _

"_You're wrong," he said._

_His arrogance made her laugh. "I'm never wro-OH!"_

_His lips covered hers, and the word was stolen from lips. He was kissing her... and it was like two souls meeting for a waltz. _

_This was a man she had seen in his darkest days, when his cheeks were sunken and his eyes were dead and as black as his name. This was a man who she had watched die. And yet he was holding her, but not just holding her. He was holding her like he wanted her, in every sense of the word. His lips were rubbing against hers, kissing with fire and demanding it back. His hands were on her bare skin, sliding over her abdomen and making goosebumps erupt in its path. She could feel him breathing out of his nose, the stubble on his jaw was scratching her, and it hurt her, just as she hurt him… fisting his hair and kissing him back. _

_When their tongues met they seemed to forget who they were. No longer were they Sirius and Hermione, best friend's Godfather, Godson's best friend; they were two people, different in age, but together in writhing passion and aching need for one another. His hands were everywhere, rough and foreign on her silky skin, but manly and so perfect in a way she didn't understand. They groaned and whimpered, and every movement seemed unnaturally loud in the quiet of the house, yet it was music to their ears. The undressing began: the tug of the top, the unbuttoning of his shirt, the snap of her bra, the zipper of his jeans and the yanking down of hers. They barely broke from kissing, but when they were disrupted by intakes of breath or flying clothes, they'd rush to recapture each other's lips like they were the water to each other's thirst. They kissed until they were panting, arms wrapped round necks so hard they could strangle. _

"_Siri- hmph…us…!" _

_His tongue was still wrapped within her own, and she had to push him off hard just so she could breathe. He rolled over with a grunt. _

"_Just… give… me a … moment," she heaved, immediately her eyes fell shut as he proceeded to suck on her bobbling breasts, hot tongue whirling round her nipple. _

"_SIRIUS!"_

_He raised his head, hair unkempt, cheeks flushed and a crooked grin playing on his well kissed lips. The best bit was his eyes; Silver and smoky and gazing right into her own, like he wanted to do nothing else for the rest of his life. Somewhere inside her there was the fluttering of wings and, she was quite certain that it was her heart soaring high into the clouds. Sirius looked astounding. _

_His hand slid slowly up her back, and whatever she was going to say was lost. His fingers were tangled in her hair and gently pulling away at the clasp that held it all together. Her hair fell down to her shoulders, the loose curls effortless, and her buttoned lips gave way to a biting lip smile that he knew he'd be thinking about every time he closed his eyes to go to sleep. They flickered over her face, drinking it all in, saving it to memory._

_He shook his head, dazed. "They don't make women like you anymore Hermione."_

_She moved towards him this time, and when her lips brushed against his he moaned lowly into her mouth. Their kiss started slowly again, gently, moving into neck suckles and nails raking through his hair. She was flat against the sofa, her eyes closed and mouth open, with him on top of her. No words, just the rip of her knickers and hasty pulling down of his boxers and then they were naked. _

_They both stopped. _

_Several moments passed, and she felt vulnerable. She was shaking - he could feel her shaking… he was too. He moved his hand up to her cheek, reassuring her, whispering sweet something's in her ear that she couldn't make out but changed her, and him, forever. _

_He traced the outline of her cheekbone softly with his finger, watching and staring as she parted her lips. He graced her with a look that was tender, and warm, and doting, and... no more thinking. He was making her heart race. His fingers grazed her throat and it was then, when his breath was mixing with her own, and their eyes were locked together … did he speak. _

"_Yes or no?" he murmured, kissing her lips chastely. "I'll love you either way." _

_He waited for her to say something. _

"_Yes." _

_A sigh of relief escaped him and the faintest of smiles spread across his lips. "Then close your eyes." _

Hermione awoke abruptly in an icy, cold sweat. She felt like the sheets were smothering her, like she couldn't breathe, and she kicked them violently off of her until she was sitting upright and panting. She could feel his hands all over her skin, still, even now- his burning touch that kept her up, woke her up, and drove her to the depths of insanity. She hated it, she felt sick by it, and tears clawed at her eyes _because_ of it. Because of _him_. Again! She was half way across the world and yet Sirius bloody Black wouldn't leave her alone.

She glanced across the room to the small wooden cot by the window, where the small body of Evie lay sleeping soundly, with one hand curled by her ear and the other by her mouth as she sucked her thumb. Hermione briefly closed her eyes and, she didn't know why, she'd never be able to explain it-but seconds later the tears fell.

She ran to the bathroom, shaking in a mess of sobs. She even cried in the shower with the water running and it echoed horribly off of the stone walls. She fed Evie and walked down to breakfast, thinking nothing except…

_Fuck him. Fuck him. Fuck him. Fuck him. _

"Nice sleep Hermione?"

Her father, Hugh, was tinkering away in the kitchen preparing breakfast and she felt herself jump at his voice. Her mother, Jane, was sitting at the table spreading marmalade on to toast and looking expectantly up at her whilst saying hello to Evie in a silly voice that only Grandmother's seemed to be able to do. She mentally shook herself and plastered a smile on her face.

"Yes, lovely thank you." She didn't mention it was anything but. "What are the plans for today?" she moved forward and sat down at the table holding Evie close to her side.

"Well your flight is at one am. We've already paid for it," her mother said, taking a sip of tea as Hermione made a long sigh. "Sweetheart, we'd much rather you catch the plane home than do whatever you did to get here. Not to mention it'll be easier for little Evie."

"She was okay, weren't you darling? We had fun didn't we?" she said, kissing her gently on the head and smiling. In response Evie yawned widely and continued sucking her thumb, her big eyes fixatedly on her granddad who was being way too energetic flipping pancakes in the pan. Hermione rolled her eyes fondly. It was something Sirius would do. She bit her lip and immediately felt teary again.

Her mother was still looking at her. "Just for this once, can't you do it the proper way? I doubt you do many things the proper way when you're back at home," she said cynically, and Hermione rolled her eyes. They'd had this conversation many times in the past. "Do you cook?"

"Of course I do."

"Without magic?"

Hermione ogled at her, almost comically, "_Yes,_ mum!"

"Well that's good," Jane nodded, watching her daughter through narrowed eyes as she drank her orange juice. "What about Serious? Does he?"

Hermione choked on her orange juice, and the glass slipped from her fingers and hit the table, flooding the white cloth. She sprang up, "Sorry – sorry! I just lost my grip, I can clean it up-" she shakily retrieved her wand from her pocket, pointed it at the spillage and vanished it. Evie waved her small arms and tried to reach her mum's wand, then started crying when she swiftly put it back in her pocket.

Hermione was busy bobbing her up and down, kissing and whispering into her ear when her mother said again. "So does Serious cook?"

She figured she couldn't put the question off any longer, or the subject of … him. She turned to her, sighing. "It's _Sirius_ mum. And … - yes, he does."

He didn't. Last time she heard Remus was teaching him how to turn on the oven. But Remus and Tonks had told her that he was quite incredible at making steak. '"Particularly rump,"' they had said. Hermione had never actually eaten with him alone; their time schedules were totally different. In the mornings she'd always have left for work by the time he had woken up, and in the evenings she ate around six, and he nearing the nine o'clock mark; he was so backward like that…

"And how does he get to work?"

Her breath caught in her throat, and she glanced around awkwardly. She'd never been a good liar, and Harry and Ron quite frequently pointed it out. "Er … he doesn't actually have a job at the moment." By the shrewd looks on their faces she felt like she needed to elaborate. "You see he would've had one, he's very intelligent, but - well, he was imprisoned – _falsely_ imprisoned, for twelve years…" Clearly elaborating was a bad idea. "And then he was killed by his cousin when I was in fifth year, do you remember? Harry's Godfa-" her cheeks burned, and she hastily rushed on, thinking they didn't need a reminder of the age gap between them that was somewhat gigantic. "And he came back to life again… it's all very complicated. I'm sure I told you…" her voice trailed to silence.

Her father put the pan back on the oven and turned to her. "You did tell us, Hermione. Many months ago over the phone," he winked at her, a warm smile on his face. "He sounds like a nice chap."

Hermione grinned in spite of herself. "He is."

To her he wasn't. Not really…

"I'd like to meet him."

She glanced between her mother and father, almost laughing at the absurdity of it all. "You are joking right?"

To her utter shock and dismay, they both shook their head. Hermione had to grip the back of the chair for support. "No!" she squeaked. "I'm sorry to be blunt but… you can't. It is out of the question."

"I appreciate that you aren't a couple sweetheart," he began, "your mother and I are giving you our full support on that, as we always will, but he's still the father to our granddaughter! We have to meet him, it's only polite."

"Polite?" she bristled. "Dad, you haven't even met my boyfriend yet, and I've been with him for eight months!"

"That's true," Hugh muttered thoughtfully, as if he she'd had a point. He turned to his wife. "We have to meet Stanley as well."

"NO!" she was positively mortified. "I didn't _mean_ that – for goodness sake, will you listen to me? You're not meeting either of them! Everything's so complicated, throwing a 'meet the parents' thing in is not what I need!"

Her mother frowned slightly, concern in her eyes. "What's happened darling?"

Hermione covered her hand over her face. "Nothing…!"

She was aware of how rude she sounded, and it was very out of character for her, but she was on edge. She was teetering over a rickety bridge that could break any minute. She was cradling her heart in bubble wrap in case she fell, and broke apart. She was _scared._

"No, come on, you wouldn't be reacting so dramatically otherwise. You were in a great mood yesterday. What's gone on since? I heard you in the bathroom this morning you know."

Hermione's lip was trembling. "Did you?"

Her mother and father nodded. She knew they weren't trying to rub it in; they were just trying to be helpful, because it wasn't like they could do that much with her living on the other side of the world. She tried her hardest not to cry, and found herself battling anger instead…

It wasn't fair for Sirius to call her and spring all that he did on her when she had come to visit her parents, for the first time in months. She wanted so much to be able to smile without trying, laugh without forcing it; she wanted to be able to shop, sunbathe, sip cocktails without wondering what was happening at home. She wanted to play with Evie without thinking of how she had put the phone next to her cot last night so that her daddy could hear her sleep…

She realised that her own parents were still looking expectantly at her. She took a deep breath in, sounding much more confident and convincing than she felt. "It was nothing, really… Sirius called me last night and apparently…" she went to say it. "…he… he-"

He loves me.

"-We just had an argument is all."

How was it even possible? After all the horrible things they had said to each other, after all the slammed doors in faces and slaps across cheeks and… he loved her. She didn't understand, and she didn't want him to explain it. She didn't want him to do anything but leave her alone, because it was always him that made her mood sour. And yet there were times when he had been lovely to her, and those times, god dammit, were the ones replaying through her mind.

"_You have no idea how long I've dreamt about this."_

_He was nestled between her thighs, and her legs were wrapped around his waist. He started to move, thrusting slowly into her eliciting enchanting gasps of delight from her as she watched him, with those honey brown eyes that shone in the dim candlelight. She wished she could take a picture of how he looked right then; eyes gleaming, lips set in a heavenly, sexy smile even as he clenched his jaw and huffed with restraint. _

_She pulled on his silky locks, and whispered. "Kiss me." _

_The alluring soft tone made him crumble and he leant towards her and lay flush against her, his elbows preventing her from being crushed. Pressed to one another they couldn't tear away from each other's gaze and, instead, they captured each other's lips, kissing achingly slow as he pushed and thrust into her, slowly gathering speed. Somehow she knew that they weren't "fucking", as a lot of people saw sex these days. As cheesy as it sounded, they were making love… in the rawest, sexiest and most passionate way she had ever experienced. Her emotions peeked at their all-time highest. _

"_Oh Sirius…" she whimpered, groaning sensually. She grazed her teeth along his ear. "Faster… faster…" _

_He bucked his hips harder and did as she wished, pushing faster into her, drinking in her expression. He saw everything of her. There were times when her eyes would fall shut out of sheer pleasure and he would grab her cheek and kiss her fiercely, effectively turning her attention back to him. They moaned into each other's mouths as their tongues danced and twirled; they were drunk on each other's scent and drugged from their kisses, touches, the pounding rhythm of their bodies. _

_It was more than a little surreal. They broke for breath, and with no whispers or mutterings, just the feel of her silent scream against his mouth, her arms clasping around his neck and the shivering and shuddering of her body, he rode out her orgasm. It was her first, and it was from him, and it was… _sensational_**.**_

Her mother was speaking, and she blinked and focussed on her words. "…So how about we go shopping, and then we can take Evie to the beach. We can make sandcastles. You'd like that wouldn't you sweetie?" she was talking in her silly voice again, holding her tiny hand.

It was an offer she couldn't refuse. Not because it was sounded incredible, but because Hermione couldn't bring herself to speak. It was widely known she was clever, "the brightest witch of her age," someone had said, (whose name she didn't want to mention) – but in that moment, the ability to form words melted away, and all she could do was blink.

"_I'm … oh shit, I'm going to cum," he hissed, "I'm going to…"_

_His body turned rigid above her and she watched affectionately as his head dropped to her the crook of her neck. Suddenly, his pounding stopped, and he was swearing and kissing her desperately like he never wanted to stop. There was one last thrust, the deepest of them all, and he let himself go inside her, her name a cracked sigh on his lips._

He sat on a bench in a Charing Cross. His leather jacket was open and it was freezing, even though it was late August, and the rain was pattering down on him. It was that annoying, pathetic drizzle that wasn't wet enough to put your umbrella up but wet enough to make your straight hair curl. His eyes were roaming over the lake and the rippling water which the ducks seemed to glide across. Being alone next to the dark and desolate pond was the image of peace and he leant closer, watching intently with a little frown on his face, completely lost in his own world.

His mind was on her.

He caught sight of a pair of ducks, floating by the edge of the pond. There was a big one with a green head- the male, and a medium sized brown one- the female, and they were so close to one another their feathers were brushing. Their beaks were opening, and if he tilted his ear he could hear them talking to each other, laughing, or maybe they were talking about the weather, or how hot or cold the water was today or… something. He didn't know. They hung behind as the larger group of ducks glided away, but what were they waiting for? They were waiting for something. And then, there it was. From out of the bushes a little duck came, a baby duck. Tiny it was. It had yellow fur, some sticking up on its head, and her paddling was swishy and not as confident as her mother and father. He said 'her', but he had no idea if it was a girl. But they were a family. And they paddled off together, the baby in the middle, the mum and dad either side, as happy as ever.

He watched them until they had disappeared and then bowed his head, closing his eyes to the cobbles and trying, so hard, not to cry. He was a man for fuck's sake. Men don't do that. Men don't show emotion, men don't cry when they've had a bad day, they suck it up and get on with it. Even if it meant ignoring his thumping heart and how much it ached, and how much _he_ ached. Because those ducks were everything that he, Hermione and Evie weren't, but everything he wanted them to be.

…A family.

"_I'll never forget that," he whispered into her hair. "Ever."_

_She made a hum of contentment. _"_I know. Me either."_

_They were in his room, on his bed, curled deeply within the confines of the duvet… both naked. The room was in darkness, but he could make out the outline of her silhouette next to him. He shifted slightly and gently moved to spoon her, his arms automatically winding around her waist; they stilled when his hands were on her abdomen, and the embrace was complete when her hands rested upon his, their fingers interlaced. _

_He showered kisses up her neck and temple before nuzzling his nose in her hair. "Goodnight love."_

"_Goodnight Sirius."_

_They drifted to sleep, sharing body heat, feeling their heart beats slow. _

"Wotcher."

He turned and to his surprise he saw Tonks walking towards him, holding several large shopping bags and sporting bubble gum pink hair. She was smiling at him, but also had her eyebrows raised, as if wondering what on Earth he was doing here in Charing Cross, gazing out at the lake in the rain that was now pouring heavily. He looked like a lunatic, to put it bluntly.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she sat down next to him. "Are you lost?"

Sirius actually felt his mouth split into a grin, for what felt like the first in years. He shook his head. "No… though I probably look it."

Tonks amusedly hummed in agreement. "Yes. You do. Why?"

He chuckled and scratched his stubble, but answered the question with a question. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"I was doing some shopping," she said with a shrug. "Mum swore that Charing Cross was the best place in Muggle London. They have all those small shops that sell the most amazing things, but no one ever knows about, you know?" he nodded. "Anyway, it started raining and I thought I'd find walk round here and find a safe place to apparate…"

He could feel her eyes on him again, like he was being scrutinised silently. She knew Hermione and Evie were away, and seeing him alone, soaked and feeling sorry for himself now probably had her putting two and two together. "The first month of being a parent is the hardest. I thought you would've loved a few days being alone." she commented.

He quickly glanced up. Was it that really that obvious that he missed them? She must have seen his expression because she started to laugh. "I would usually find you in a pub, not on a bench staring at a lake," she said. He grunted and ran a hand through his damp hair, hating to admit she had a point.

"I suppose you could say I'm upset that I've missed Evie's one month birthday," he said quietly. "And I … wish I was with them."

"Them? Hermione too?" she let out a low whistle. "Something's definitely changed… Drastically! Who are you and what have you done with Sirius Black?"

He crossed his arms with a dramatic indignant huff. "I _usually_ have these sorts of chats with Moony," he said pointedly.

"Well seeing as my husband isn't here, you'll have to have me." She sat up straighter and adopted a teacher like tone. Sirius chuckled.

"You're a woman, and I'll be complaining about a woman."

She sighed exasperatedly. "Well, all the more reason then! I can help you understand her. A woman, such as myself, knows the inside of a women's mind. Why we say certain things, and do certain things. There's practically a woman's language. If we say 'do whatever you want', then don't. If we say 'is that what you're wearing?' then you should probably change. If we say… you get the picture," she grinned and patted his arm. "And if this is Hermione you're getting all worked up about, then even better, because I know her."

"That makes one of us," he growled, his eyes dark and sullen.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh Sirius don't be so dramatic, you do know her! You live together!"

"Makes no difference, she still pushes me away," he murmured. He tried to hide the anger out of his voice, to not let on that, secretly, he was seething inside.

"You want to see her… more?" she asked slowly, pursing her lips in intrigue.

He raised his arms to show how clueless he was. "All I know is that I want them home. I don't miss waking up to Evie crying at five in the morning, but I miss holding her little body and kissing her goodnight. And Hermione…" he trailed off, knitting his hands together. He was suddenly aware of how his heart started beating faster at the mere mention of her name; her name rolled from his tongue so easily.

"You miss her too?"

He sighed and closed his eyes. "Yes."

Her excited squeal did not go unnoticed to him, and he crossed his arms, as if sitting on this bench and having this conversation was nothing but a chore for him. It was like a younger sister trying to pry information from her brother about who he was crushing on, and he was quite enjoying himself-… though he would never admit that.

"Do you love her?"

He froze for a second then immediately shook his head. "Stop there. You're pushing your luck Tonks." His voice was solemn, an 'all jokes aside' kind of tone, though she caught the smirk slowly sliding across his lips. He tried to carry it off as something else but she saw it, and her eyes twinkled.

"You do, don't you!?" He barked with laughter, and she squealed in delight. "You _do! You love her!_"

"Oi, let's not talk about my emotions ay?" he said, adopting coughing to hide his chuckles. She knew all the men's tricks. "I'd best be off anyway, I need to go and break up with Maria." He stood up, and with a kiss to her cheek and a ruffle to her hair he turned to leave up the cobbled street. "See you later Nymphie."

It was the name he used to call her when they were children.

Over his shoulder he caught sight of the ducks- all three of them, together and gliding across the lake to embark on a new adventure. Smiling, he tore his eyes away and checked his pocket watch to see the time. _5:06pm. _The smile grew into a grin, and he began to whistle as he sauntered away.

This time tomorrow, his girls would be home.

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><p><em><strong>A few of you wanted a flashback of the Halloween night, and so here it is. Thank you so much for all the reviews, they keep me writing! Have yourself a merry little Christmas, yeah? Loads of love, only 2 more chapters till the end! (can't wait to put a sock in this bloody angst, I'm fed up of it too haha!)<strong>__**  
><strong>_


	19. Bath Tub

_AN: I've deleted Tonks' "list" thing from the previous chapter, it wasn't needed and I just couldn't be bothered to do it! But here we go, the one you've all been waiting for..._

_**Chapter Nineteen: Bath Tub**_

* * *

><p>It was night time, early hours, when she arrived home. Thirteen thousand miles she had flown, and now she was standing at the door to Grimmauld Place, eye level with the heavy padlock. That door had creaked open to thousands of Black purebloods stretching back to the fifteenth century, maybe even before that, and here she was, head bowed to her feet on the gritty third step, her pretty pumps on the grey cobbles and suitcase alongside, holding her sleeping baby to her breast.<p>

She could hear footsteps behind her, the wet pound of a shoe in the puddles of rain that had fallen over London, and she briefly wondered how insane a person would have to be walking the streets at this time. Or perhaps they were walking their dog. Or maybe they _were_ a dog. She turned, expecting to see a black shaggy dog bounding towards her with its tongue dangling from its mouth, but saw a man instead. His blonde fluffy hair was longer than she remembered.

"Stanley, hi," she said, smiling sincerely.

"Hey," he stepped forward into the light of the street lamp and grinned. "Tanned I see."

She hopped down the steps and went to meet him, beaming. "Of course!"

"You look lovely."

She looked to her pumps, blushing. "Thank you. What are you doing here?"

"Well I knew you were back tonight and I figured it would be an ungodly hour, so I'd thought I'd come and see you and little Evie." He stroked a finger down Evie's soft cheek. Dozens of people had been coming up to them in the airport, cooing over her in her pram, stroking her chocolate hair, saying how beautiful she was. By now Evie was well used to the attention, and so she slept on. Hermione could feel her tiny tummy rise and fall as she breathed, could feel her warmth as she patted and soothed her back.

"Hmm, she was a bit grizzly on the flight home," she said quietly, watching her with love in her eyes, "I think she was missing her daddy." Even she felt upset when she said it. "Look, I'm going to have to go. We're both exhausted."

Stanley couldn't nod enough, "Sure, sure. Meet me tomorrow? We can go for a butterbeer, and you can tell me all about Australia."

Hermione bowed her head again, feeling awkward and awful and not entirely sure why. "I can't, Stanley."

"Oh." He frowned in disappointment. "Why?"

"Because I…" she swallowed and looked at him, raised her chin and mustered all the Gryffindor courage she had. "I don't think we should see each other anymore. I'm really sorry."

In some ways fighting in the Battle of Hogwarts was easier than this; you weren't directly hurting people's feelings if they were hitting you with a curse and you hexed them back. It worked both ways, but this worked only one and one in two people would walk away with a hole in their chest. As it was, hers was fully intact.

Stanley didn't seem to know how to respond, but the devastation in his eyes was unquestionable. His whole body seemed to clench, and he glared at the house behind her. "It's because of him isn't it? Sirius bloody Black."

"No, it's not to do with him," she was shaking her head, irritated that the first words out of his mouth jumped to him, "It's because I don't love you Stanley. I'm trying to do the right thing by everyone, my daughter most of all. She needs a proper family."

"What's he got that I haven't though?" he was pointing now, jabbing his finger into the air, "What is it about him that makes you look at him like you do? I've seen how you are."

Hermione's mouth dropped and she tried her hardest not to shout, for her baby's sake. All she could do was shake her head, do her best to keep the tears at bay, and shake her head some more. "I don't know what you are insinuating, but I assure you it is not true."

"Stop lying, you're in love with him!"

"I'm not-!"

There was a burst of a door and the clonk of boots and she spun around. Sirius was standing there, his shaggy dark hair blowing in the midnight breeze, his white shirt creased and half undone and whipping against his tattooed chest. He still had his stubble and faint goatee, and his grey eyes that shone through the darkness like wet wax on a candle. The tenderness that lay in them when he saw the girl was deep and raw and as clear as the moon that hung above them. It had been four days, and she felt the world fall around them as she stared back.

"Oh here he is, Black to the rescue," Stanley sneered from behind her, glaring daggers at the intruder. "I warned you he would make a bad father, Hermione, one day he'll prove it…"

Sirius strolled toward him with his hands in his pockets, a muscle twitching in his jaw. "You know I'd run if I were you, little boy," he growled, creeping closer to his face, "Or you'll be shitting your pearly white teeth on the floor and getting arrested for littering."

Hermione widened her eyes with a gasp and reached for his hand just as Stanley pushed against him. The atmosphere had taken a sudden, dramatic turn. They were glaring at each other in loathing, hands twitching for wands, shoulders rolling, and testosterone raging. There was unmistakeable fear in Stanley's eyes but he seemed to stumble on, not being able to stop himself. "Hit me then Black, I have nothing to lose! Go on, _hit_ me! Show me the curses your family undoubtedly would have done on our Hermione if they'd be alive-"

Sirius lunged threateningly forward and Hermione huffed and swore and pushed herself in between the two fiery men, turning her back on Stanley. Sirius's hand was clenched into a fist and trembling with fury and she clutched on to it, stroking her thumb across his knuckles and forcing her hand inside his. "Sirius, please stop it, let's get inside…"

Stanley leered at her, arms outstretched and incredulous. "And you say you aren't in love with him! You're lying to yourself!" His voice was hard and seeping with bitterness and Hermione had to bite down on her tongue before she snapped. She blocked it out.

Sirius however, couldn't. He was shaking, his eyes no longer warm and soft but wild and menacing. With every second he was the man on the Azkaban posters, his barking laugh echoing to the heavens, his body frail and corpse like. She could no longer see _her _Sirius, the man that smirked and winked and irritated her to no end. She couldn't see him, and it terrified her.

"You leave her the fuck alone or I'll rip off your head and take your tiny cock with it!" he had seized his robes and was growling from the back of his throat like his dog counterpart. "YOU FUCKING HEAR ME?" he roared, his veins throbbing, "STAY AWAY FROM HERMIONE!"

"Sirius, leave it!" she whisper shouted, desperately shoving and tugging him to the house, "Evie's asleep! Think of her! Please!"

She practically pulled him up the steps as Stanley shouted pathetically from the pavement. "You're lying to yourself Hermione! You're in love with him and you're lying to yourself!"

She shut the door with a slam and slumped back against it, heart on the brink of shattering.

Sirius was raking a hand through his hair and watching her with damp eyes. It was a while before he spoke, and when he did his voice was hoarse and cracking. "I'll … I'll take Evie up."

Sirius wordlessly took Evie from her arms and cradled her to his chest, silent tears trickling down his cheeks as he showered her with feather light kisses, beaming when her tiny hand squeezed around his finger even when she was in dream land. Hermione watched as he whispered in her ear sweet things and stroked her hair. She could barely make it out, but when he descended the stairs he said it again, and she melted at what it was: _"Let's go to sleep my little princess." _

Five minutes later Hermione had stripped and sunk into the depths of the bath tub. Her feet rested elegantly on the edge, toes curling in her tranquillity, her mind at last at peace from Stanley and his yelling. Was she lying to herself? Was she in denial? By the time she had stopped deliberating the questions the water had cooled and the soapy suds had cleared, so that her nakedness was there and visible beneath the quivering water surface. She didn't like to look at herself naked, but she didn't mind too much now. The weariness from the journey home and the drama outside had made her care less about things. Twenty four hours trapped in a plane hurtling above the air was really too long just as much as eight months in a loveless, sexless relationship. Her brain was slow, like the beat of her heart. Her eyelids were heavy, and each time she closed her eyes she wondered if this would be the time when sleep would take her.

Hasten to say, it wasn't. Footsteps made her wake this time, the echoing footsteps of boots on the stone floor, and suddenly she was blinking in the brightness of the chandelier above (yes, the Ancient House of Black had chandelier's in the bathrooms too) and turning violently to face the now open door. The water sloshed over the edge and hit the tiles, drenched the bath mat, but Sirius's dark eyes were fixated on her.

"Come out now," he rasped through the silence, "it's been over two hours."

She tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear and turned her back on him, speaking quietly to the wall. "I'll be out soon."

"Soon is vague."

He sounded pained, and her eyes snapped shut like window shutters.

She tried to swallow, but her throat was dry and scratchy. She needed a drink, and she'd been opting for hiding in the bathroom until she died of thirst instead of going to the kitchen; she knew on the first step out of that door she'd be exposed to him…and not because she was naked, but because her heart was. She didn't want to fall in love with him, and the premise of it scared her more than anything, because there was a part of her that already had, and it was alive and pulsing inside her because Stanley had seen it. She didn't know when. She didn't know how, but he had.

She found the notion that absence could make the heart grow fonder ridiculous, but when she saw Sirius at the doorstep she found it true nonetheless. He looked so fierce in that moment, so sexy and manly, more sexy and manly than masculinity itself. And now she wasn't looking at him, refused to look at him; all would be surely resolved that way. She would remain in the bath and stare at the tiles, run her fingers over the chipped one, and pretend that the heat on her bare back was the glare of the light, not the glare of him. She would carry on disliking him, as she was supposed to.

"Hermione."

His voice was soft and desperate and lovely and she brought her knees to her abdomen, blinking back tears she wished wouldn't fall. "What?"

"You can't ignore me forever."

"No not forever," she muttered, chin resting on her folded arms, "just for fifty years or so."

She was being stubborn and Sirius hissed from behind her; as far as he was concerned only he could act like a petulant child, not her, and he was having none of it. His boots hit the floor again, stepping closer into the bathroom, and a thud told her that the door had shut behind him. "Evie's asleep now and we're talking."

"Sirius, I'm in the bath, this is not an appropriate time!"

"When will it be an appropriate time then Hermione? When you're ignoring me like the plague round the house? When you're back at work with that nut job Stanley? When you're jetting off to Australia again? When?" He slammed down the toilet seat and sat down on it, facing her, breathing heavily, his eyes like some beautiful hurricane.

Her nerves were making her tremble and she bit her lip and bowed her head. She couldn't look at him. "I – I need a drink."

She couldn't think of anything clever to say that would steer the subject away from that phone call two nights ago, so she settled for a truthful statement that was both unhelpful and annoying to Sirius. He dropped his head and swore huffily the moment he heard it, and for a second she thought he was going to stand up and walk out, and she wasn't sure how she felt about that, but then he rubbed a tattooed hand across the stubble on his jaw and murmured, "Accio water."

A glass of ice cold water flew through the door from the kitchen as if it had just been pulled out of the fridge. Sirius caught it and held it out for her and she numbly took it from him, covering her breasts as she leant forward with a blush neither of them mentioned.

She brought the glass to her lips and drank, feeling silly and awkward that he was watching her, his eyes sliding over her face and neck achingly slow, like he was savouring it to memory. She sunk low enough in the bath to ensure he couldn't see anything else, but that still didn't change the fact that she was naked and her skin was wet and he was a metre away. He liked naked women, and he liked sex, and he had professed to more than liking her. The tension in the room palpable, and she was suffocating in it.

"I won't go back to him," she whispered, "if that's what you think. It's over."

"It's over with Maria too."

His voice seemed to jump out of nowhere and she inclined her head towards him and settled the glass on the bath edge before she dropped it, still avoiding his gaze, still trying to steady her ever quickening breath. "Why? I thought you … got on well..." she trailed off sheepishly, not really knowing what to say. What did he want her to say?

"You said I couldn't say the things I said to you when I was still with her, and now I'm not, so I'll say them again," he pushed off the toilet and fell onto his knees, shuffling against the tub.

She squeaked in protest.

"Sirius, you don't have to do this-"

"I do."

"Stop-"

"No."

He cupped her cheek and forced her to look at him, clenched his jaw and dared her to look anywhere else. "I don't want anyone if they aren't you. I loved you then and I love you now, and it won't stop because I've fucking tried." He brushed a hand through her wet hair, shaking his head as his grey eyes flickered over her face and shone like a sun ray across the ocean. "I knew it when we were at your old flat, and I was talking to Ginny in the hallway. You came out of the bathroom, hair dripping from your shower and your leg bleeding. You had cut yourself shaving, and you looked ridiculous… and I fell for you, and I fall for you every time I see you. Every morning when you think you look like crap, every night you fall asleep on the sofa, every smile..." he exhaled. "I'm in love with you."

Inside she was screaming and pounding her fists against his chest, begging him to stop because it hurt too much, the tenderness in his eyes, the softness in his touch, the baritone murmur of his voice, it all hurt too much. On the outside she was shivering, weak and half crying, half trying to pretend like it wasn't affecting her at all.

"Why?" He was holding her against his chest and she pulled away from him aggressively, about to succumb to sobs and only half-heartedly covering her body. "Why do you love me? I've never given you _any_ incentive to fall, why couldn't you fall for someone like Maria, someone like you and not so…" her breath hitched, "like me."

"Because I want _you_ and I'll always want _you_ until they lay me down to fucking rest!" his voice dropped quieter as if he was coming to terms with this himself and he exhaled shakily, feeling his emotions getting the better of him. "She's not you, Hermione. No other woman is you and I…" for a second he looked embarrassed but then he raised his eyes, and she was struck speechless with the adoration she found there. "I love you endlessly, Hermione. You're my first, second and third."

Oh good God. He was devastating.

Time seemed to stand still, and he dropped his eyes to her lips. They were red from being bitten, and he tentatively brushed his thumb across them. She could've whimpered he was being so sweet, and any hopeless romantic would have surely fainted at his feet, but she didn't. She couldn't sit still for any longer so she stood up. The water trickled down her body in beads, and her perky breasts bobbed as she stepped out the bath and hastily lunged for her towel. It was abrupt, but Sirius scrambled to his feet too, watching her with his mouth open, body stiff, and eyes as black as his name. They were lingering on her arse when she whipped the towel around her, blushing furiously. This was the second time this had happened, damn him.

She dashed out of the door and almost broke a bone from tripping over the mat, and Sirius followed after her, hot on her heels.

"Where are you going?" he demanded, grabbing her hand, "Hermione!"

"I'm going to get changed and then I'm going to bed," she snapped, wrenching her wrist away from him. She dashed for her bedroom, but he was quicker and blocked the door before she could reach it. The scathing look she gave him made him smirk, and when she nipped back to the bathroom to get her wand and pointed it to his chest, he barked with laughter.

"I know you've threatened to kill me before love, but really, this is just cruel."

Hermione clenched her jaw in the way she often did when she was furious, and shook her head at him in warning. "Move out the way."

"No."

"Sirius!" She gritted her teeth, her voice a low hiss that promised great pain. "Move out the way!"

"No." He stepped closer to her, and she watched as her wand scraped the skin directly above his heart. "I know why you can't look at me Hermione. I know why you hung up on me when I told you that I'm in love with you, and I know why you're running now."

"No you don't! You think you know everything about when you don't! You think you can read my mind, and tell me what I'm thinking and why I do certain things, when you DON'T know! YOU DON'T KNOW ME SIRIUS! STOP ACTING LIKE YOU DO!"

He had surged forwards and seized her forearms before she could finish, shaking her senseless. "I DO KNOW YOU, BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!" he roared, making her jump, making her cry, "I_ LOVE_ YOU AND I WILL TELL YOU EVERY MINUTE, EVERY HOUR, AND EVERY DAY OF MY LIFE IF IT MAKES YOU SEE THAT YOU LOVE ME TOO!"

Without thinking and without control, Hermione leapt across the hallway and slapped him.

Out of all the times she had slapped him, it was without a doubt the hardest, and he staggered backwards, clutching his cheek. Both their chests were rising and falling with heavy breaths, both their bodies were straight and tense, and both their eyes were seething into one another's. A moment of silence fell over them, like the calm before the storm, and then they disregarded everything and went for each other.

There wasn't time to think…to analyse. They moved hastily and rashly to close the space and meet halfway in a desperate open mouthed kiss. Like two puzzle pieces their wet tongues latched together and groans shuddered their bodies, adrenaline pulsating through them, reckless with passion. He moaned and squeezed her hips. She gasped and fisted his hair.

"Oh God I love you, you idiot," she whispered between kisses, "so much."

He ran a hand through her wet hair and pulled her closer towards him, kissing the breath out of her, "Why don't-" he yanked her towel off of her and let it crumple on the floor, "-you ever-" he dragged his lips across her jaw, and bit down on her neck, "-_listen?_"

His hands slid over her arse, grabbed and squeezed her breasts, stroked her thighs, they were all over, as were his lips. He explored her like a man starved, a man horny and drunk, a man with only one selfish need in the world. The buttons flew as she ripped his shirt off and kissed down his chest with reckless abandon, and it was the both of them that tugged down his trousers and boxers, not even managing to get them off, just shoved down to his knees like he was desperate for a piss. Seconds were too long. They were stressed for skin on skin, aching to be joined in the most intimate of all ways and didn't care which framed portraits witnessed it. Forehead to forehead they moved, and it was with rough, animalistic necessity that he hastily thrust his cock inside her and fucked her greedily against the wall. He hissed and panted and snarled like a dog, bit her like a vampire. Their skins slapped together with each agonisingly brutal thrust, and her hands helplessly pushed on his arse in a feeble way to get him closer, deeper inside her. She wanted all of him. Seconds were too precious and minutes too long, and fireworks were popping behind wild eyes. She shuddered and he quivered in tandem as they came less than three minutes later.

Their coupling was even more perfect than the first time.

Afterwards they lay on the floor of the hallway facing each other, their legs and fingers intertwined like grass stems of daisy chains. The house was silent, and they listened to their slowing heart beats with smiles on their faces. Hermione's hair was still damp from the bath, and Sirius ran his fingers through it as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes.

"I could die happy," he whispered.

"Let's not die." she halted his roaming hand with her own and kissed it softly. "We've already died once."

"Veils and births," he grunted, "what fuckers."

"What fuckers," she nodded with a beam, then rolled on top of him, resting her forehead against his, their sexes aligned. As she looked into his eyes, she felt suddenly self-conscious. "I'm sorry it took me so long to tell you."

"I would have waited even longer."

She quirked an eyebrow. "You said you couldn't have waited for me any longer. You yelled it down the phone like some madman!"

The corners of his lips twitched, and he shook his head floppily. "I was lying." He brushed his thumb down her cheekbone, "I love you too much."

"Sirius!" she exclaimed incredulously, pressing a finger to his lips when he started to laugh. "No, I can't believe you!" even through her temporary, grudging shock she was still unable to resist kissing him soundly. "I love you too."

"Good," he tightened his arms around her, and his lips moved against her hair, "You're mine now, Hermione. I'm never letting you go, understand?"

"Mmm," she hummed, glowing inside, "I understand. But if we're going to do this, Sirius Black, you can't be picking up witches in pubs-"

"I won't be in pubs. I'll be staying in with you and Evie being a doting daddy and husband."

He said it simply, like it was a fact and she warmed all over, smiling so much it hurt her cheeks.

"When did we get married?"

She'd asked him that before, when they were on the escalators of Oxford Circus tube station. She knew he remembered, because he smirked amusedly, squeezed her waist and murmured the same shivering reply, deep into her ear. _"I'll let you know."_

Some time later, when she was dozing on him, he turned them over and pushed himself to his feet. "Come on love, let's go to bed. We've got a exhaustingly long day ahead of us tomorrow."

She frowned and followed him dazedly, rubbing her eyes. "Why, what are we doing?"

"Stop being adorable," he muttered, leaning in for another lingering kiss, "we're having make up sex for every argument we've ever had." She shot her head to stare at him and he swatted her arse with a delicious smirk. "We'll start in the library."

He picked her up and carried her to his - now their bedroom, ignoring her giggling protests to _'put her down this instant!'_; they collapsed on the bed and crawled into each other's arms, whispering, laughing and kissing until they fell asleep, wrapped as one body and heart. It was their last night spent together since Halloween, and the first night of the rest of their lives together, and merlin… it had been a long time coming.

* * *

><p><em><strong>When I wrote that they lasted three minutes I laughed so much I spat all over my keyboard. Got to love passionate sex ay? Epilogue to follow. Lots of love!<strong> _


	20. Epilogue

_The end is here!_

* * *

><p>Chapter Twenty: <em><strong>Epilogue<strong>_

* * *

><p>Sirius grumbled and rolled over, muttering her name as he felt for her warm body next to him. His fingers were met with only cold sheets and he sighed and buried his head into her pillow, trying to smell the apple shampoo of her hair and the sweet scent that was her. He hadn't realised how much he'd missed his witch until he woke up alone. Usually they'd be ignoring the ringing alarm clock as they slowly made love right now, their bodies warm under the morning sunshine that shone onto their bed. Then they'd tremble into the most blissful orgasm together, let another hour slip by as they cuddled and kissed and then had lazy sex again. Waking up to see her sleeping in his arms was the kind of moments he lived for, but she wasn't there with him now and it made his chest ache and his fingers twitch to just <em>hold <em>her.

He held the pillow instead and closed his eyes, wishing she'd get home soon, because _fuck_, he wanted her in every sense of the word and missed her so much it was making him sick. Remus would be highly amused if he saw him acting like his soppy dog counterpart as he was now, and Fred would definitely laugh and tease him relentlessly, but he didn't give a shit. It was their wedding anniversary. She was supposed to be _home._

Soon he was up, showering and flinging open his wardrobe. He told himself he was putting on his maroon shirt because it was a summer colour, not because Hermione always loved to wear it around the house. She looked so sexy in his shirts.

By a quarter to eight he was creeping into the first bedroom across the hallway. The curtains were shut, making the deep purple of the walls look almost black in the darkness. Sleeping on her bed was his little daughter Evie. She was five years old now and grew more and more like Hermione with each passing day. She had her teddy bear, Honeycomb (named after her favourite ice cream flavour at Florean Fortescue's in Diagon Alley), tucked under her arm as she slept, muttering softly under her breath. Sirius couldn't help but grin. Often when he came to wake her up she was sleep talking, and he thought it was adorable.

He knelt down on his knees and stroked her hair, which was wavy and fell in loose ringlets past her shoulders, like Hermione. It was dark chocolate and in the sunshine the roots shone a gorgeous auburn, and her eyes were the prettiest honey brown and squinted when she giggled. She was just like her mummy in personality too; she liked to read books and had her own mini library collection in her room which was full of every story a little girl could want. Her favourites were wizarding fairy tales from The Beedle and the Bard, such as Babbitty Rabbitty and the Cackling Stump and the muggle Cinderella, both of which Sirius and Hermione took turns to read to her every night before she went sleep. And inevitably, having two of the cleverest parents that had graced Hogwarts floors, Evie could already magically change the colour of flowers in their garden and had learnt from Teddy Lupin how to enlarge chocolate cookies. Teddy and Evie were very close. Once or twice Remus had occasionally joked that they'd be married one day, but Sirius didn't find half as amusing as he did. She was his little princess and would _always_ be _his_ little princess.

Evie rubbed her eyes and slowly sat up, blinking. "Daddy? Is it time to get up now?"

"Yes it is baby," he said with a smile, "Come and give me a morning cuddle!"

He opened his arms wide and she crawled towards him in her pink pygmy puff clad pyjamas, giggling when he picked her up and smothered her rosy cheeks with kisses. "What will it be then princess? Porridge? Toast and jam? Fried eggs? Or a big full English with sausages and bacon?"

"You _know,_ daddy!" she tittered happily, "I have porridge with lots and lots of sugar on top!"

There was a distant yell of "I want sausages and bacon!" from next door and seconds later Wilfred Alberic Black burst through the door. He was only three, and already his son was a carbon copy of him with dark whippy hair and grey eyes and a mischievous smile to boot. He had cheeky charm, dimples, and a tiny scar on his cheek bone from crashing his miniature motorbike in the patio when he was two. He had a deep gash in his cheek and there was blood everywhere, but Willy didn't shed a tear. He stood with his chest puffed out and held onto his mummy's hand as she healed the cut and kissed him all better. To this day he still refused to let her remove the scar magically because he said it was cool and made him 'a big boy like daddy'.

He was wearing broomstick clad pyjamas and holding his toy hippogriff (appropriately named Buckbeaky) in his hand. His hair was cutely sleep tousled and he was jumping up and down, staring up at his father with barely concealed excitement in his eyes.

"You want _what _Willy?" Sirius asked with a smirk. He knew exactly what.

Willy ran and slammed into his dad's leg, tugging at his trousers with such strength he nearly pulled them down. "Sausages daddy, sausages!" he pulled harder and Sirius barked with laughter.

"Alright, alright, c'mere you rascal."

He swooped him up with his arm and threw him over his shoulder as his sister giggled next to him.

"So porridge with lots of sugar, sausages-"

"And bacon!" Willy yelled.

"Alright, I was coming to that you cheeky bugger-"

"Mummy said bugger is a rude word! I said it to Albus and - and she sent me to the naughty mat…"

Harry and Ginny had finally married and had their first, Albus Severus, who was the same age as Willy. The two terrors were already best friends and partners in crime, just as Sirius and James were back in the day. Willy was so funny too. He seemed to do outrageous things and then come up with some long and logical reason for doing them. It drove Hermione mad because she knew he'd got that from her. No words could ever describe how proud he was of his boy, every day, for being more of a troublemaker than he was.

"Daddy where's mummy?" Evie asked, fidgeting with his collar. She'd done it since she was a baby.

"Well she's in Paris isn't she princess, the ministry said she had to go as part of her job."

Hermione now was Head Healer at St. Mungos. Stanley left a few weeks after she split up with him and transferred his job to a wizarding hospital overseas. She was highly praised for work she did in the institution and Sirius couldn't be prouder of his wife, but it just hurt that she had to make a compulsory trip to Paris for some shitty research in French skele-grow potions when they were supposed to be celebrating five years of marriage together. This of course was why he had awoken alone that morning for the first time since their wedding night.

"I miss her," Evie whispered.

Willy nodded, "I want a mummy cuddle," he muttered, curling into his neck.

Sirius should have expected this. It was, after all, the first time his children had been away from their mother for longer than the normal working day, so of course they were going to miss her just as he was. He sighed and kissed both of his kid's foreheads. "I want a mummy cuddle too. She'll be home in-" he glanced at the clock on the wall, "seven short hours. Now let's make that breakfast ay?"

He set them on the floor so they could sit down at the table in their special places. Willy always insisted that he was in the chair closest to the oven, so he could watch the food inflating as it cooked. Evie liked to sit in the blue chair, because since they had explained to her the Hogwarts Houses her heart had been set on Ravenclaw, and Sirius always sat opposite Hermione so that he could tease her with games of footsie. But then it wasn't such a wise choice on his part because once or twice she had 'accidentally' nudged him where the sun didn't shine.

Evie's porridge was in the microwave and he was half way through cooking the sausages in the pan (yes, he had learnt to cook now) when the telephone started to ring.

Willy's little legs wriggled to the floor and he raced to the phone in the hallway shouting, "Daddy the fo, the fo, the fo-!"

"Willy come and sit down!" scolded Evie, sitting at the table and setting the perfect example.

"That's my girl," Sirius whispered, dropping a kiss to her head. Evie grinned with dimples and cuddled into his side, not wanting to let go. "Let me answer the phone and then I'll be right with you alright princess? And if you look out for mummy's owl in the window she might send a letter to say how much she misses us." He winked at her and kissed her once more before he left to find Willy. He found him seconds later, trying to jump up and reach the phone. It was an ambitious effort by his boy considering he stood only about a head taller than his knee.

He grinned and scooped him up with a kiss to the cheek. "A few more years maybe squirt. Hello?"

"Sirius!? It's me."

"Hermione?" her name was a gasp on his lips, and immediately he heard the scrape of a chair in the kitchen as Evie rushed towards them shouting 'mummy!', and Willy clung onto his neck and pressed his head to his dad's to try and hear her voice.

"I'm just about to head to the hospital now, but I wanted to ring you before I go to say happy anniversary, and that I love you so, so much."

"Oh baby I love you too, with all of my heart, happy anniversary," he was nearly crying for fuck's sake, how was it he was nearly crying? "You left twenty one hours and… thirty minutes ago and already I'm lost without you - me and the kids. We want mummy cuddles."

"I want a mummy cuddle!" Willy yelled down the phone.

Hermione started laughing and crying at the same time. "I want daddy cuddles and Evie cuddles and Willy cuddles too. I love you. Put me onto the kids quickly, love."

"I love you; alright, you want to speak to mummy Willy?"

Willy nearly snatched the phone off of him. Evie stood on the ground, standing on her tip toes with her lip trembling as she faintly heard her mother's voice, but not enough to hear what she was saying. Sirius soothed her by stroking her hair and holding onto her little hand in his. "You can speak to her after Willy, I promise princess."

She nodded and leant her head on her dad's leg, waiting patiently as her brother spoke.

"I've been playing with Buckbeaky and flying my br- broom with daddy … no Daddy's cooking sausages… hmm… no I want chocolate do they have chocolate in p-p…" he wrinkled his nose and looked at his daddy.

"Paris," Sirius whispered.

"Paris?" he asked. Hermione obviously replied yes because he was grinning. "Thank you mummy … love you lots too… yeah… with big jelly tots too."

Sirius barked with laughter and Evie giggled, then with another kiss he took the phone off of his son.

"No Mummy said its Evie's turn daddy."

"I know, I'm passing it to her you cheeky monkey-"

"Oh." Willy covered a hand over his mouth to stop the giggles and let himself be lowered to the floor.

Then Sirius lifted his little girl up so she could hold the phone and talk. "Mummy? I miss you … yes, when I went to bed daddy read to me … errrrr… 'A Little Red Hood Riding', no wait I shall ask daddy…"

"'A Little Red Riding Hood'," he clarified with a smile and a slight shake of his head. She was too adorable sometimes.

"Yes but I did not like it when the big bad wolf eat the grandma … _ate _the grandma… no … that's mean … yes but do you have enough money to get me sweeties mummy?"

"Course she does darling," Sirius said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and holding her tight.

"Okay…" Evie said, smiling kindly, "thank you mummy… I hope the people are nice to you… love you lots too… bye-bye."

Evie handed him the phone and snuggled into his neck. "Thanks princess. So how are you getting to the hospital darling?"

"I have their floo address," Hermione said, "though I don't know which floor I'll land in, it'll be a nightmare trying to find my way to the accidental magic floor…"

"You're wonderful at speaking French though love, I'm sure you'll fine…"

"Hmm, I hope so," she muttered, sounding worried. "Anyway, I have a surprise for you later..."

"Really?" He hiked Evie higher in his arms and readjusted the phone, getting excited. "What is it?"

"No Sirius, you'll have to wait until tonight."

"Oh baby-"

"Have you booked us a dinner reservation?"

"Naturally, but I can cancel it if you just want to … er … stay in and…" he glanced at the kids, still hanging onto every word, and cleared his throat, "stay in and you know… cuddle."

"Cuddle," Hermione repeated with a laugh. "Okay after we put the kids to bed. You know I like cuddling."

"I like cuddling too, I'll owl and cancel the reservation. And you know what I _love_ baby? Your pussy…cat."

"_Sirius!_"

"Mummy doesn't have a pussycat!" Willy said loudly.

"Pussycat daddy?" Evie said, eyes wide, "Are we getting a pussycat?"

"Have fun explaining that one, darling," Hermione practically sang. "I have to go, have a good day and be good. I love you."

"I'll try, I love you. Oh, and by the way, when you get back into England apparate to the Burrow, Molly's having a picnic over on the hills."

"Sounds great, I'll see you there then. Love you."

"Love you more than firewhisky, and my motorbike, and my leather jacket, and more than Quidditch and amazing hot sex in the morning."

He thought he'd said it quick enough that his kids wouldn't catch the last part, but he was wrong.

"What's sex?" came Willy's voice again.

"Sirius, stop it!" Hermione hissed.

"That one was a genuine mistake, love."

"Right, well I really am going now, kiss the kids from me and wish me luck."

"I will baby. Good luck, you'll be perfect, you're always perfect. I love you."

"I love you."

When the kids were finally fed their porridge and sausages, washed, dressed and had eventually stopped asking their daddy what 'hot sex' was, Sirius, Evie and Willy headed over to the Burrow. They often spent days over there, letting the kids run wild in the forest and hills of the beautiful English countryside. They would eat cheese and ham sandwiches, the kids drinking pumpkin juice and the adults sipping elderflower wine as they all sat and watched the pastel sun set over the trees. Sirius, Remus, Harry, Ron and the twins helped the kids play Quidditch with toy brooms while Ginny, Tonks and Luna lounged in their chairs, gossiping, talking and laughing about work, their husbands and their children. For they nearly all did have children now; Harry and Ginny had Albus, then there was Teddy, now seven, and his little sister Marlene who was two and also a metamorphous, and finally Luna and George. The pair had fallen in love after she started working part time at the Weasley Wizard Wheezes joke shop, and they married soon after and had a curly blonde haired baby boy called Eli. He was already hilarious.

After all they had gone through in the Order, it was an unspoken wish on all the parent's hearts that their children would grow up together, and they were. In the best of ways.

"Merlin says eat the worm!" Willy chanted, and all of the children squealed and pulled faces as Teddy took the slimy worm out of Willy's fingers and dangled it above his mouth.

"Ergh, Teddy!" Albus cried, "you're going to be sick!"

"No I'm not! I'm as brave as a knight!"

"You're still going to be sick," Albus said.

"Teddy don't," Evie began, covering her hands over her eyes. "It's moving, look!"

"Relax, Evie!"

Without another word Teddy dropped the worm into his mouth and proceeded to chomp quickly, squeezing his eyes shut and jumping up and down as he did. His hair turned a pale green. Albus pulled a face and stuck his tongue out in distaste, while Evie kept her eyes clamped over her eyes, waiting for someone to tell her it was over. Willy, on the other hand, was clapping his hands happily and pealing over with giggles. "Teddy's eating a worm! Teddy's eating a worm! Yum-my! Yum-my! Yum-my!"

Remus was standing at the back of the house having a chat and a butterbeer with Harry when he heard the chant. It was due to his lycanthropy that he could hear it and also due to his lycanthropy that he could sprint so quickly, so when he realised what exactly little Willy had said, he shot away so fast that for a moment Harry lost sight of where he had went. It wasn't till he saw him standing atop of the hill dragging his protesting son behind him that he realised.

"You do not eat _worms_ Teddy!" he yelled, "you know that full well! Your mum is going to go absolutely berserk when she finds out!"

"But _dad_ we were playing Merlin says-!"

"Yeah, well dad says you were being a silly twit!"

Remus sent Teddy off to his mother, who was sitting on a picnic blanket with Luna and looking anything but pleased. Then he went to search for his best friend. He found him lounging on one of the garden chairs along with Fred, laughing into a firewhisky glass. "Sirius, your son just dared my son to eat a worm, and he _did!_"

Sirius blinked and exchanged a look with Fred before they both slapped their knees and roared with laughter.

"It's not funny Sirius! It's not funny at all! That worm was probably filthy with germs!"

His oldest mate drained the rest of his glass and set it down on the table with a thud. "So is your dick when you haven't had a shower Moony."

"Pads," he groaned, trying to ignore Fred's sniggering, "stop being crude, that is disgusting-"

"You know what else I think is disgusting? Eating a worm." Sirius started chuckling again.

"Pads-"

"Alright, fuck!" he said, coughing and sipping his drink, "I'll have a word with him."

"Good, because if you don't I'll tell Hermione and let her sort it out."

"Leave Hermione out of this," he growled.

"His wife is a touchy subject at the moment," Fred told him.

"Oh," Remus said, taking a seat, "You missing her that much?"

"Miss her?" he crossed his arms with a huff, looking very much like his son when he was having a sulk. "I don't function properly without that woman. It's our fucking wedding anniversary. Five years."

"I know mate, Dora told me this morning. Congrats."

Sirius glowered at him and dug the heel of his boot into the ground. "Thanks."

His eyes followed his children as they played in the sun... how Willy was pretending to be a tiger and roaring (he did that a lot), and how Evie would look over at Teddy, sitting on the picnic blanket, and blush shyly whenever he grinned at her.

Sirius turned sulky again. "I just wish she was here."

"It's shitty," Fred agreed, "couldn't she have asked Kingsley to schedule it for another day? He's the minister for magic, he could've pulled a few strings surely-"

"She didn't want to bother him. I would've asked him - you know, to pull a favour for me but Hermione said she'd just do it to get it out of the way…"

The kitchen doors sprang open from behind them, and the voices of two women were heard, chatting animatedly and laughing. One sounded like Ginny, and the other-

Someone tapped his shoulder, and he dropped his head to the back of the chair so he could see behind him. She had long waves of chocolate hair that blew in the breeze, glowing sun kissed skin and a simply beautiful smile, and he twisted in his seat so hastily that he knocked the table and a glass smashed on the floor. She was here - in a summer maxi dress instead of her healer uniform. The woman that stole his breath away.

His wife.

"Hermione! What-?!"

Instead of walking around his chair he barged it over and Hermione squeaked in surprise, though she really shouldn't have been. He was usually quite rough when they'd been away from each other for a while. He pulled her against his chest and hugged the breath out of her, then pulled back on her hair so he could find her lips and kiss her desperately, and very hard. She loved his kisses more than most things, but he was being more possessive than he'd been in a long time and she was feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"Sirius-" Their friends were around them and she was smiling too much now for kissing.

He pulled back, resting his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry love, I'm sorry, I've just missed you like fucking shit…"

"He has Hermione," Fred said to her, eyes wide and nodding.

"I know," she said, looking back at her husband with a tender smile, "It's been horrible."

"Why are you back so early?" Sirius asked, searching her face, "Was this your surprise? I'm surprised!" he said, chuckling and going in to kiss her softly again.

She kissed him back, shaking her head, "The Head healer in the French hospital told me to go home after…" she bit her lip and sighed softly, "I wanted to tell you when we're alone. It's big news."

He held her tighter to him, lips kissing briefly again, kissing, _always_ kissing. "I'll wait for tonight then. I'm just happy you're home with me and the kids. We'll stay in and order a takeaway tonight and-"

"Yes," Hermione said quickly, shutting him up with another kiss. He knew she thought he was about to say something about _what exactly_ they'd be doing tonight, because when he looked at her he saw she was blushing. He simply smirked and winked at her, saying nothing at all.

"Evie! Willy! Mummy's here!"

"_Mummy!_"

Evie came running down the hill, hurtling towards her mother with her dress blowing out behind her in the breeze. Hermione knelt down, ready and waiting for her daughter's leap into her arms; the one she did every day when she arrived home from work.

They were both giggling when she did it, her little arms wrapped around her neck and her mummy's hugging her close. Hermione showered her faces with kisses and stroked her long hair, smiling when she realised it smelt of her own shampoo - apples. Sirius had obviously given her the wrong shampoo in her bath last night. It only made her laugh.

"I've missed you so much darling, and look at you in your pretty dress!" she cupped her cheeks and kissed her nose, wishing she had a camera about just so she could snap her daughter looking so cute. "I've got you some special, special sweeties for you at home…"

"Yummy! Does Cinderella eat sweeties mummy?"

"Of course she does baby…"

"What about Prince Charming … does he?"

"Yes, Prince Charming loves sweeties too… where's your brother, darling?"

He usually played on top of the hill with Albus, but she couldn't see her little boy there now. Glancing at Sirius she could see that he was standing up and searching his eyes across the landscape for him too.

* * *

><p>The two boys were lying on their tummies in the shade of the large tree. They hadn't noticed, or maybe didn't seem to care that their clothes were filthy, or that they had several leaves stuck in their hair. Willy even had a small twig in his, which Albus thought was very funny indeed. He tapped him on the shoulder, trying to get his attention.<p>

"Willy, look! Look what I can do!"

When Willy was watching, Albus closed his eyes and frowned in concentration, then seconds later his short jet black hair shot past his shoulders.

Willy's eyes grew wide and he clapped his hand over his mouth and started giggling, "You look like a _girl!_"

Albus started giggling as well and swishing his long hair over his shoulders, probably impersonating his mummy. "You do it too!"

Willy's giggling stopped and he shook his head, suddenly shy. "I can't."

"Why not? I can do lots and lots of things, but mummy and daddy say-"

"Hey!"

Both of the little boys scrambled up, Albus looking considerably innocent, even with his long hair; they both visibly relaxed when they saw it was Teddy who had spoken, and next to him was Evie, who was crinkling her nose at the state of her brother's clothes.

"What are you doing?" Teddy asked.

"Mummy and daddy are looking for you Willy."

"We doing magic!" Albus announced proudly.

"Well then you have to be very careful," Teddy said very seriously, sounding scarily similar to his father. "You can't lose control of your magic because the muggles might be able to see us if we do."

Evie was suddenly holding Teddy's hand and nodding, and Willy bowed his head to his shoes, his cheeks blushing. "But I can't do anything," he muttered, scuffing his feet.

His sister skipped over to him and hugged him close, whispering into her ear and trying to cheer him up, as she often did. "You will soon Willy, I promise."

"Yeah, don't worry Willy!" Teddy said, ruffling his hair, "My dad says your mum Aunt 'Mione is the cleverest out of _everyone!_ And your dad," he started to grin, "your dad got into loads of wand fights with mean people at Hogwarts and beat them _all!_"

Willy scrunched his nose and wandered away from them and over the top of the hill to where his parents were. They were sitting on chairs with all the other grown ups, surrounding the picnic blanket. His daddy was holding Marlene and laughing with Uncle Harry, so he crawled onto his mummy's lap and buried his head into her neck.

"Mummy," he whimpered, clutching onto her.

Hermione immediately broke conversation with Ginny and cradled onto her boy, frowning in concern. "There you are! I've missed you," she went to stroke his hair and frowned slightly at the twig, swiftly taking it out. "What's the matter darling? Why aren't you playing with Albus?"

"Don't want to. He grow his hair and I …" his lip trembled and hid in her neck again, "I can't."

"_Grew_ his hair, Willy, and why do you want to do that? Your hair is lovely," she stroked his dark locks which were shiny and shaggy like his father's.

He shook his head, "no. I can't do magic and I won't go to Hog – hog-"

He couldn't say it, but Hermione knew what he meant, and she kissed him and rocked him as he cried. It broke her heart when he cried, because he was such a brave little boy that when he did cry, she _knew_ he was sad. Sirius heard his son's cries out of fatherly instinct and turned to his wife, all laughter gone from his face as he saw the tears welling in his boy's eyes.

"He thinks he won't go to Hogwarts," Hermione mouthed at her husband as she soothed a hand down Willy's back. "Sweetie, magic doesn't always show till your eleven, you know that. And there's nothing wrong if you don't do magic. Nanny and Granddad don't do they? Millions of people don't, and they're still happy. They can do nearly everything we do, and they have a much better taste in clothes."

Willy gave a humph and snuggled further into her arms. Hermione glanced at Sirius for support, and he nodded and gave Marlene to Fred, who was more than happy to take her.

"Willy, why don't you go and play with daddy?"

"Just me and daddy?"

Sirius stood up and knelt in front of the chair, arms reaching out to tickle him under his arms. Willy giggled and squealed at his father's intrusions. "Just you and me," Sirius growled into his hair, making him squeal louder.

"Okay," Willy said, scrambling from his mum's lap.

"Er Willy, doesn't mummy get a kiss before you go?" Hermione asked, pouting her lips and pretending to be sad.

Willy grinned and fell back against her, kissing her cheek. "Love you mummy."

"Love you baby."

She watched his little legs run back to his father, how he giggled hysterically when Sirius easily picked him up and kissed him, threw him up in the air and caught him, then swung him on his shoulders and bounced up and down as he clung on. Sirius was most attractive when he was with their children; he was a natural and the reason why Willy's tears soon dried on his soft cheeks. She could hear him talking to Willy now as he strolled away. "Your name has been down to go to Hogwarts from the minute you were born, and any stupid arse that says you won't be a great wizard will have _me_ to answer to…"

Excitement flashed in Willy's eyes and he held onto his dad tighter; to him, and to most little boys, their dad was their hero, and for Willy Sirius definitely was. He thought his dad was the greatest wizard out of them all; could fight anyone, could solve anything, could make the scariest growling noises when acting the Big Bad Wolf in their bedtime stories, had the coolest flying motorbike and could turn into a black dog to play with him. No other person, except maybe her, could cheer him up quite like Sirius did. Hermione didn't realise Ginny was speaking to her until she waved a hand in front of her face and laughed. "Hello? Anybody in?"

She blinked and turned away from her husband, "Sorry. What did you say?"

Ginny just grinned. "You're awful you know that? How is the sex that good that you can't stop ogling-"

"Ginny!" Hermione glanced around them and lowered her voice, "don't _talk _so _loud! _I've been away from him, I'm allowed to look-"

"Stare," the red head corrected.

"Oh shut up!"

"Alright 'Mione keep your page number," she popped a crisp into her mouth and quirked an eyebrow. "So in answer to my question…?"

"Yeah, yeah it's incredible. Always has been…" she gazed into the distance at her husband. He was holding the toy broomstick steady so Willy could climb onto it, her favourite smirk gracing his lips. She let out a long sigh and smoothed over her wedding ring. "You know, tonight really couldn't come soon enough…"

"Hmm… how often do you have it would you say?"

Hermione looked sheepish and quickly bent down to get a sausage roll from the packet.

Ginny knew what she was doing and started laughing, "No," she nudged her with her foot, "come on!"

"Well… we have set times. They are usually in the morning before the kids wake up, and then when the kids are in bed and we are relaxing on the sofa..." the blush was creeping back again, "where we would have the long-day-at-work cuddles that turn into something erm…_more_," she closed her eyes in embarrassment. "So I – I suppose most days really…" she let out a laugh of mortification at how much she was revealing. "I'm sorry."

Ginny shook her head and stared at her as if she was mad. "Don't be daft, you can give me some pointers with Harry! We struggle to do it twice a week!"

"Hmm, but Harry probably isn't as horny as Sirius," she said quietly, rolling her eyes. "I doubt any man is as horny as Sirius. It's his doing that I'm a mother of two at the age of twenty seven, and he knows it."

Her friend grinned. "It's nice though, I've never seen either of you happier. Are you going to have any more kids, do you think?"

Little Marlene, with bubble gum pink hair, crawled up her legs and settled on her lap, and Hermione wrapped her arms round her as she spoke. "Yes, I want one more and Sirius wants one more. He'd like a whole Quidditch team of them if he had his way," she sent her an exasperated look which Ginny laughed at, "what about you and Harry?"

"We'd like a couple more. Albus is already raving about Hogwarts, and I don't want him to grow up so fast. Harry's not exactly helping by decorating his room in Gryffindor colours…"

Hermione nodded in agreement, "I know, Evie already wants to be in Ravenclaw."

Luna, who was singing to baby Eli in his pram, raised her head to her friends, her eyes bright and twinkling. "Really!"

* * *

><p>"Bed!" Sirius said again.<p>

"But daddy, I want a glass of milk-"

"You've just had one, now it's time for bed."

He waited for Willy to climb onto his bed, and when he did, he closed his eyes and raised his head to the air in silent thanks. It usually took Willy much longer to settle down – sometimes ten minutes just to get into him into his pyjamas, let alone into his bed. It had been a long day of playing, laughing and generally being a terror for Willy, and he must have been exhausted. Sirius looked pointedly at him and pulled up the duvet, covered in Quidditch broomsticks. "Under the covers as well, mate."

Willy slid inside, dropping his head to the pillow. "Bed time story time!"

"Alright." Sirius knelt on the floor, his head close to his son's and began to recite one of his favourite stories. "There once was a pure blood wizard named-"

"Sirius!" Willy yelled excitedly, obviously having recognised the story.

Sirius grinned, "You got it in one, son. His family was one of the cruellest families around. They were bad people who thought they were better than everyone else, and they believed bad things and tried to make Sirius believe them too. He didn't like them one bit. One day, when he was old enough Sirius went off to the most magical school in the world called-" he pressed a finger to his boy's lips, "shhh…" he whispered, "called Hogwarts. There he met the best friends of his life, and they called themselves the Marauders-"

Willy clapped his hands and cheered at this. He had heard many stories from his daddy about the adventures of the Marauders, and he and Teddy were both in awe of the things their father's got up to.

"…They could change into animals and were strong, brave wizards who stood up for the good and fought against the evil, but the evil was too strong and one horrible day Sirius was thrown into a cold jail…"

"They _stupid_…" Willy muttered, crossing his arms over his chest. He never liked this part of the story.

Sirius stroked his hair, "I know son. Young Sirius was in there for a long time, and he grew very weak, but he _never _gave up on the good in the world. Many years passed and one day he became strong enough to change into a dog-"

"_Snuffles!_"

"And he escaped. He swam across the ocean and ran for many miles, until he got back to the one place he felt happy and at home… Hogwarts. But Sirius had to be very, very careful. The evil people were still running after him and trying to put him back in jail; they told everyone nasty lies and said that he was the bad one, when all he had ever done was try and protect the people he loved. One night when he was staying in the Shrieking Shack, he saw a young maiden that called him Mr. Black-"

"_Mummy!_"

Sirius chuckled and nodded. "Mummy. The maiden was named Hermione and she was the cleverest muggle born witch of her age. She was the first person in a long time to treat him like he was real and Sirius cared for her very much. Years passed and he watched her grow into a woman, the most beautiful woman in the whole world, and Sirius fell in love with her. He would've done anything for her but she wasn't his to have, and that scared him because he wanted to protect her from the evil tyrants in the world. So…"

"He told her?" Willy piped up, happiness making his eyes bright.

Sirius stroked his son's soft hair and grinned. "He did. Sirius told her that she was his princess, and that he would love her forever and ever. Hermione said she loved him too and they got married, had a little girl called Evie and a little boy called…" he frowned as if he was trying to remember, and Willy giggled and pulled on his daddy's hand.

"WILLY!"

Sirius barked with laughter, "Willy, and they lived-"

"-happily ever after," Willy whispered, smiling.

Sirius nodded, smiling the same smile. His son didn't know that the order was somewhat mixed up, but that didn't matter, because the ending was still true. Sirius leant forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Night, night Willy. Sleep tight."

He stood on his feet and switched the light off, but Willy quickly sat up again.

"Daddy, check for the monster under the bed-"

Sirius knew he was going to say that, he worried about the monster most nights; he shook his head firmly. "I've checked mate, there's no monster in the house and if there is daddy will fight him."

"Promise?"

"I promise," Sirius said, kissing him again, "now go to sleep. Love you lots."

"Love you daddy."

Hermione had already read Evie to sleep and he crept in to kiss her goodnight too before making his way to their bedroom. Hermione was already in bed with the sheets pulled up around her bare shoulders, reading a book. He shut the door behind him and quirked an eyebrow. "Are you naked already?"

She looked up with a blush and closed her book, "erm… maybe…"

Sirius's smirk grew, and he prowled towards the bed, unbuttoning his shirt. "Well then, I'd better catch up then hmm?"

Fuck, he was as hard as a brick and he hadn't even seen her body yet. He sat on the edge of the bed, pulling off his socks when Hermione slithered behind him, wrapping her arms around him and trailing soft kisses along his jaw and down his neck.

His eyes drifted shut and he groaned at her innocent caresses, loving that he could feel her erected nipples against his back, loving that goosebumps scattered her skin when he touched her; the effect they had on each other was startling, and when it became too much for both of them he turned and latched onto her lips in a fierce kiss that pushed her back on the bed.

She stripped him of his clothes and rubbed him with those hands, and somewhere along the way he was staring at the ceiling watching with black, hungry eyes as she straddled his dick. How did that happen? My, my how the tables had turned… He gripped onto her hips, his voice a cracked groan.

"Baby you're killing me…"

"Hmm… that wasn't my intentions…" she dropped a kiss to his lips and sprang off of him, darting to their en suite bathroom.

He raised his head from the pillows then, squinting at her as she left him. "What?" his voice was hoarse, and he was breathing hard, "Hermione I said you're killing me I didn't say stop-!"

She turned back to look at him.

He was stretched out on his back, gloriously naked with his tattooed chest and cock slung upwards, a slow, haughty smirk sliding across his lips when he saw that her eyes were dark and fluttering. He was sinfully sexy, and there was no getting away from it- _such _an arrogant arse, but he was _her_ arrogant sexy arse, therefore she glowed with love.

She pranced back over to him and dropped a kiss on his lips, "I stopped because I need the loo."

He growled and caught onto her arm, yanking her and making her topple back on top of him, "you aren't going anywhere Mrs. Black."

He started to kiss and suckle her neck but all she could do was laugh and push him away. "Do you want me to release my bladder on you?!"

He didn't answer that, and she nodded firmly, her point made. "Well then."

Foreplay passed in a blur of tremors and whispers and exhaled breaths, and then he was pushing her legs up and telling her that he was going to show her how much he loved her. He promised it as he slid his cock up and down over her wet lips, and hissed it as he slowly sunk himself inside her. Dark shadows of their anniversary moonlight were breaking through the curtains and glowing onto the master bed, and their bodies were mere silhouettes in the darkness now. The red wine covers were kicked down to their toes, and the loud ticking of the grandfather clock on the landing went long ignored as they rubbed bodies and kissed lips, slowly making love.

"Sirius…" she was sobbing in want, her body writhing beneath him, "harder, please harder."

He shook his head and held her tighter. "No love, I want to feel all of you. I want to feel your pussy clench around my cock as you cum." His stubble scratched her as he leant down, smirking deliciously against her neck, and she gasped and breathed small sounds as he sucked on her pulse point and that bit in between her collar bone that he knew made her all his. "Come on baby, let go."

She was breathing sharply now, her back arching as she groaned. "God, you feel so amazing, I love you…"

"I love you," he whispered back, "so much. Cum for me baby, milk my cock with your sweet, tasty juices, I need to feel you..."

He was thrusting harder now, his balls slapping against her with every thrust, making her back arch and eyes flash as she cursed with need. He barked out a laugh even as he huffed and clenched his jaw, trying to restrain from coming himself; Hermione only ever swore during sex, and it turned him on more than anything. He watched her as she bit her lip and rolled her eyes to the back of her head… she always looked so sexy when she did that.

"Sirius… Sirius…!" she grabbed on to his arse and pushed helplessly against it, wedging his cock impossibly deeper inside her and making them both cry out. Her nails dug painfully into his skin and he hissed and grabbed onto a bobbing breast, pinching the nipple before putting it into his mouth, sucking with no abandon. "Cum!" he growled.

Her breath hitched and she squeezed her eyes shut, "Sirius I'm coming, I'm-!"

He could feel the change in her body, the beginning of the shakes, and he pulled her mouth to his and kissed her as she trembled and pulsed around his cock. She was squeezing him so tight that her heart beat felt like his, her panting breath like his air, her sweat his own. She was so beautiful when she came, and he tried to tell her but his voice was too cracked, his eyes too heavy. He was on the brink, and he couldn't hold out for much longer.

Hermione was whispering in his ear. "Cum inside me Sirius, please cum inside-"

He was thrusting so hard that the bed frame slammed against the wall, and all he could think about was her pussy and how wet and perfect it was, and then his balls were tightening and he was coming inside her, yelling her name to the heavens.

He slumped against her, crushing her breasts to his chest as she wound her limbs around him. His forehead rested on hers, and their eyes were closed, and all that was heard was the slowing thud of their hearts and the heavy pant of breaths. They stayed in that blissful silence for a long while, their sweat cooling on each other's skin.

He buried his nose into her hair and kissed her temple.

"What were you going to tell me earlier? The surprise?"

He gently raked his nails down her back, smiling when her toes curled and her eyelashes fluttered like an angel's. She opened her eyes slowly to him and ran her hand soothingly down his chest. She felt so relaxed, so at peace with the world that nothing could break her smile. Nothing.

"I'm pregnant again," she said, pursing her lips happily.

Sirius's eyes widened and his large hand slid from her breast to her abdomen, "you're-?"

She nodded, laughing quietly at his face; he looked so funny when he was shocked, because it was rare that anything _ever_ shocked him. It was top entertainment when it did. "I found out this morning; that's why they sent me home early. So I could tell you. Sirius…" she cupped his cheek and gazed into his lovely grey eyes, "We're having another baby."

"Oh shit," he breathed, searching her eyes, "oh shit, that's amazing, that's so fucking amazing…" he started to shake with laughter and she laughed along with him.

"I know."

"We're having a baby," he said again.

"I know."

"You're perfect," he whispered, then quieter, "you're absolutely perfect." She squeaked as he abruptly rolled them onto her back, kissing every bit of her he could find and making her squirm and laugh whenever he nuzzled all her ticklish places. "And you're so beautiful and sexy and all mine forever-"

"All yours," she said, fingers twined in his hair as he kissed her abdomen where their baby grew.

"I'm so happy Hermione," he murmured against her skin.

"I know, I am too." She ran her hand along his tight stomach, along all the inked tattoos, and the trail of hair that ran down in-between his legs. She was his, and she was so in love, and she was utterly happy. She said it simply and she said it from the heart. "You're my soul mate."

He smiled handsomely at her and sunk down to nuzzle her neck and nibble her ears, chuckling when she hummed and mewed. "And you've always been mine."

Sirius and Hermione knew that this was their 'happy ever after' ... the life they were living every day with their wonderful children. After all they had been through together - the arguments, the tears, losing her once before his very eyes - they both knew they would never take their love for granted ever again, and they just _knew_, without having to say it, that they would remain together in love and happy to their grave and whatever lay beyond that. They were meant to be, like mistletoes at Christmas and Mrs Weasley's apple pie on Sunday's, and it was that simple. And all of it was because of one night on Halloween many years ago...

Thank fuck for repercussions.

* * *

><p><em>We got there in the end! If any of you were wondering, Willy's middle name is Alberic after the wizard who created dungbombs - Alberic Grunnion - and their unborn baby will be a boy named Regulus Alphard Black. I didn't mean for it too be so long but Evie, Willy, mummy Hermione and daddy Sirius... - I just couldn't stop. I love this ship with my whole BEING so it was worth every word and I hope you agree! Thank you to everyone who's ever read this, and all of those who have reviewed. It means so much. I have a new Sirmione fanfic in the works (I have actually planned this one!) which is very different and unique, so this is by no means goodbye. In the words of Willy, I love you all lots with jelly tots. :) xx <em>


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